Heading into the season, it looked like the Charlotte Hornets would need newly acquired swingman Nicolas Batum to consistently play like his best self — "the version of Batum that just decides to take over a game [as] the rule, not the exception" — to give them a chance to make the leap back to relevance they'd envisioned before losing defensive linchpin Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. Well, so far, so good.

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The 26-year-old Frenchman continued his stellar start to the 2015-16 season on Wednesday, scoring 10 points with 11 rebounds and 11 assists to log his first triple-double as a Hornet (and the fifth of his eight-year NBA career) and lead Charlotte to a convincing 99-81 victory over the visiting Miami Heat at Time Warner Cable Arena. Batum added a steal and a block in 28 minutes of floor time, during which the Hornets outscored the overwhelmed Heat by 22 points.

Despite struggling a bit with his shot, missing six of his nine field-goal attempts on the evening, Batum was locked in and switched on from the opening tip. He showcased the rhythm he continues to develop with his new teammates by setting the table to the tune of six helpers — all leading to either 3-pointers, dunks or layups — in the first quarter alone, helping pace Charlotte to a 27-17 lead that they'd never relinquish. The Hornets led by double-digits for the bulk of the final three quarters and by 20 or more for much of the second half, with the lead reaching 30 with just over nine minutes remaining in the fourth quarter before Steve Clifford called off the dogs, allowing the Heat to scratch their way back into slightly more respectable territory before the final horn.

All 13 Hornets who suited up played, and they all scored, with power forward Marvin Williams and point guard Kemba Walker leading four players in double figures with 18 points apiece. Charlotte shot a shade under 50 percent from the field in the game and made 11 of its 27 3-point tries, marking the ninth time in 21 games the Hornets have cracked double-digits in long-distance connections; they did so just nine times in the full 82-game slate last season.

Their combination of ball movement, pace-pushing and shot-making torched a Heat team that entered Wednesday with the NBA's second stingiest defense, propelling the Hornets to their third straight win, their eighth in the last 10 games and their 10th in 13 tries in the friendly confines of their home gym. Beating Miami also pushed Charlotte up the standings — at 13-8, the Hornets now sit atop the Southeast Division and in second place in the Eastern Conference, just one game behind LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

This, to put it mildly, is not how many saw things playing out for the Hornets after MKG went down. You could kind of see a path to Charlotte staying viable, but it felt optimistic to imagine so many things going the Hornets' way — Batum consistently playing like an All-Star; Kemba Walker becoming a league-average shooter after four years of 40 percent from the floor and 30 percent from 3; Jeremy Lamb blossoming with a clear role and steady minutes after withering on the vine in Oklahoma City; bounce-back years for Jeremy Lin and Spencer Hawes after changes of scenery moving them away from L.A.; the continued development of Cody Zeller into a reliable two-way frontcourt rotation player; etc. And yet, here we are. With the exception of veteran center Al Jefferson, who is now sidelined by a calf injury and whose role has declined as Charlotte has looked to downsize and speed up, just about everyone's playing up to their optimistic projection.

After going 8-for-13 on Wednesday, Walker's averaging 17.4 points per game on 44.6 percent shooting from the floor with a 36.9 percent mark from 3 — all career highs. Zeller continues to make an impact with his defensive activity, rim-running and athleticism, chipping in nine points, two rebounds, two assists and a block in 23 1/2 minutes while manning the middle in place of the injured Jefferson, who earlier Wednesday received a five-game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Marvin Williams continues to provide a stabilizing shot-making presence as a small-ball power forward, canning four more bombs on Wednesday.

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