Charlotte Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel invited his entire team to his parents' house in Milwaukee for a home-cooked dinner before a game against the Bucks. The gathering turned into a memorable family event that went viral on social media. The next night, Knueppel scored a career-high 32 points in a loss to his hometown team.
When Charlotte Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel returned to his hometown of Milwaukee for a game this month, his mother, Chari Nordgaard Knueppel, texted him inviting him home for dinner on the team's day off before the November 14 matchup against the Bucks. 'Invite whoever you want,' she said. Knueppel, a 6-foot-7 guard, replied that he planned to invite the whole team.
Unable to get an exact headcount, Knueppel's parents, Chari and Kon Sr., prepared 15 pounds of chicken fajitas, a family staple from hosting Super Bowl parties. When a busload of players arrived, including several over 7 feet tall, they quickly added 10 more pounds. Neighbors snapped pictures from their driveways as the team parked nearby.
The gathering, intended as a small family meal, became a viral moment after photos spread on social media. Knueppel's four younger brothers—in eighth, ninth, 10th, and 11th grades and all high-level basketball players—handled the excitement well, though one tried to dunk on star guard LaMelo Ball using a miniature hoop inside the home.
The team stayed for more than an hour and a half, touring Knueppel's childhood bedroom and the low-ceilinged basement nicknamed the 'man cave,' filled with state championship rings, jerseys, and basketball memorabilia. Chari Nordgaard Knueppel is the all-time leading scorer in the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay women's basketball program and a member of its Athletic Hall of Fame. Kon Sr. also earned induction into his college's athletics hall of fame.
'I'm surprised if Mason Plumlee doesn't get arthritis from bending over so far in our 7-foot-5 ceilings in the basement,' Nordgaard Knueppel joked about the Hornets' 7-foot center.
Unlike typical NBA road trips with restaurant reservations or scattered outings, this home visit was a first for Knueppel's teammates. 'As NBA players, we're traveling around all the time, and we're in hotels—that's where we get a lot of our meals—and we're going out to eat,' Knueppel said. 'It's rare that you get a home-cooked meal. And it's not really about the food; it's just about being in the comfort of somebody's house.'
The next night, Knueppel scored a career-high 32 points against the Bucks in a Hornets loss, performing in front of several thousand family members and friends. Nearly a month into his rookie season, he leads all rookies in scoring average at nearly 18 points per game.
'We're obviously Charlotte Hornets fans, but meeting all these guys and how nice they were and how grateful they were to come over makes it want to cheer for them even more,' Kon Knueppel Sr. said. Chari added, 'They took the little boys under their wing and talked to them and included them. And that just really endears me to all of them.'