Coming Off TURN Title, Hornets Venom GT Facing Magic Gaming Live at Spectrum Center

By Sam Perley

  • Hornets Venom GT (11-5) vs. Magic Gaming (10-8)
  • Thursday, July 22, 2021 at 7:40 PM EDT
  • NBA 2K League Twitch and YouTube Channels
  • Last time out: Hornets Venom GT won 54-51, on June 29, 2020

Hornets Venom GT Looks to Ride Momentum Following THE TURN Title

Charlotte surprised a handful in the NBA 2K League community by ripping off a seven-game winning streak to take home THE TURN Championship last weekend, marking the team’s first-ever in-season title. Guard CJ “rigby” Burnett was named TURN MVP after averaging 21.3 points on 56.4% shooting (40-of-75 from three; 53.3%), 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals over the nine-game span, making him the first-ever rookie to garner this particular honor.

Led by lock Gio “Trap” Elizondo and power forward Kingsley “Crown” Braggs, Hornets Venom GT’s defense was the backbone of its staunch 8-1 showing. The team allowed just 63.7 points per outing and forced an average of 9.2 turnovers across 2-0 sweeps of Nets GC, Heat Check Gaming and Blazer 5 Gaming, including 15 in the championship clincher.

Magic Gaming Hoping to Regain Form from Pre-TURN Performances

Magic Gaming won its opening matchup in THE TURN, 2-1, over Lakers Gaming before falling 1-2 to Nets GC in the Round of 16. When it comes to regular season play, Orlando pulled off an impressive 76-61 Game 1 win over Season 3 Champions Wizards District Gaming on July 10 and overall, is 6-2 since June 26 after enduring a five-game losing streak.

Veteran guard Brandon “Reizey” Hill currently leads the team in scoring at 24.2 points per game while dishing out 10.2 assists, marks that rank 17th and eighth in the 2KL, respectively. Center Robbie “May” May is also averaging 14.6 points and sits fifth amongst all league players in rebounding at 12.6.

Opposing Player to Watch: Justin “Snubby” Stemerman

Aside from the live audience, another added wrinkle to tonight’s matchup will be Magic Gaming sharpshooter Justin “Snubby” Stemerman taking on his former squad. Snubby was the 18th overall pick in the 2020 2KL Draft and played point guard for Charlotte last season before getting traded to Orlando for the 2021 eighth overall pick, which ended up becoming Rigby. Snubby is now playing off the ball more alongside Reizey and just dropped 47 points on 18-of-23 shooting (11-of-13 from three) in the team’s 93-70 Game 2 win over Nets GC in the Round of 16 of THE TURN last Thursday night.