Charles Lee after 30-turnover loss in Boston: ‘I don’t want us to be a team that’s turning it on and off’

BOSTON — Oct. 14, 2026 — Charles Lee did not grade the Charlotte Hornets on the scoreboard after a 114-93 preseason loss to the Celtics. He graded them on consistency, and by that measure two of the four quarters at TD Garden fell short.

“I thought that we had a couple of really good stretches — those middle two quarters were pretty good — but the first and the fourth really weren’t to our standards,” Lee said after the game. “I think our guys feel it. I don’t want us to be a team that’s turning it on and off. I just want it to be always on and always trying to build winning habits.”

The turnovers erased the work on the glass

Charlotte gave the ball away 30 times. Boston turned those into 27 points, a modest return for that many giveaways, but every one of them was a possession the Hornets never got to finish. Seven came in the first quarter alone, when the Celtics went up 28-20.

Owen O’Connor asked Lee how Charlotte had kept Boston off the offensive glass. Lee did not take the compliment. He brought the answer back to the turnovers instead. Even with the glass under control, he noted, Boston still forced 29 turnovers by his count, and he made it clear he did not like it.

I asked Charles Lee after the ballgame about how Charlotte was able to limit Boston’s offensive rebounds on Wednesday night.

Pointed to the fact that despite this, Boston was still able to force 29 turnovers from the Hornets, which he didn’t like. pic.twitter.com/2VJ41iOFKr

— Owen O’Connor (@OwenOConnorNBA) October 15, 2026

It was a big step back from Sunday’s home win over Milwaukee, when Charlotte committed only 14 turnovers. Royce O’Neale summed up the night on his own: he went 4-for-4 from three for 12 points and also had five turnovers.

What “pretty good” looked like

The stretch Lee liked came out of the locker room. Down 18 in the third quarter, the Hornets went on a 14-3 run to get within six, won the period 33-31 and went into the fourth trailing only 85-77. Then Boston opened the fourth on a 15-7 run and won the quarter 29-16. Lee meant exactly that drop-off when he talked about turning it on and off.

The shooting held up. Charlotte made 16 of 42 threes while Boston made 11 of 39. Tidjane Salaün scored 16 off the bench with four threes in 22 minutes. Brandon Miller had two points on 1-of-9 shooting at halftime, then found his rhythm in the third and finished with 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. The inside game never got going, though: Boston won the paint 56-20.

One more chance before it counts

The loss was Charlotte’s sixth straight preseason defeat against Boston. The Hornets have not beaten the Celtics in an exhibition since Sept. 28, 2018, in Chapel Hill. Lee’s request for the finale is simple. “I would love to be able to bounce back with a more consistent effort for four quarters,” he said.

That chance comes Friday at Memphis (8 p.m. ET, 3 a.m. Saturday in Cairo), Charlotte’s last exhibition before the regular season. Rookie Christian Anderson Jr. is now back from his ankle sprain after scoring 10 in his debut. So Lee should have most of his backcourt options for one last look at the ball security he wants to carry into opening night.