East Notes: Hornets, Grant Williams, Bulls, Magic

Hornets

The new-look Hornets won their third straight after the trade deadline, beating the Hawks on Wednesday and receiving 15 points and 10 rebounds from forward Grant Williams — acquired in a deadline-day deal with Dallas.

The Hornets also landed guard Vasilije Micic, guard Seth Curry and forward Davis Bertans at the deadline.

“Without the guys we brought in, we wouldn’t be winning, for sure,” rookie forward Brandon Miller said. “They helped push all of the young guys and the older guys. Everybody is coaching each other and making each other better.”

Coach Steve Clifford added it helps that the players Charlotte brought in are veterans.

“The smarter your group is, everything becomes easier,” Clifford said. “I thought we could be good offensively, but now I’m starting to see the defense can also be really good without having to run around and double team. And Grant Williams is a big part of that.”

• In case you missed it, 76ers GM Elton Brand isn’t expected to pursue the Hornets’ head of basketball operations vacancy. We have that full story here.

Bulls

Guard/forward DeMar DeRozan clearly still believes despite the Bulls blowing a 17-point lead and falling to 26-29 after Wednesday’s road loss to the Cavaliers.

“The last two months have been kind of crazy because of injuries, but we pushed through it,” DeRozan told reporters. “When we come back, we need to put everything and more into the last 27 games.”

• Guard Coby White was outstanding but missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer. “‘These moments are good for us,’’ White said, via Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. ‘‘We’ve got to find a way to get over the hump. I think we will.’’

Magic

Big man Paolo Banchero drew high praise from the opponent after scoring 36 in the Magic’s win over the Knicks on Wednesday.

“He’s an All-Star. You’ve got to guard a guy like that with your team,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters. “And he made his 3s. That was a big thing. But he gets into the paint. He’s big, he’s strong and he has a good mix of shots.”

• Orlando (30-25) didn’t win its 30th game last season until the end of March 31. “I think it says a lot,” Banchero said. “We started talking this year about how much we wanted to improve, and now we want to come out after the break and make a final push. I don’t think we’re satisfied but it’s definitely something you can be proud of.”