GM: Rich Cho
Head coach: Steve Clifford
2016-17 record: 36-46 (11th in the Eastern Conference)
2016-17 result: Didn’t make the playoffs
Key departures: Marco Belinelli, Miles Plumlee
Key acquisitions: Dwight Howard, Michael Carter-Williams, Malik Monk
The Charlotte Hornets fell out of the playoff picture in 2016-17 and now it looks like they’re relying on Dwight Howard to bring them back.
The fact that Howard has never gone through an NBA season without averaging a double-double and a block is absurd. Now with the support of Michael Jordan and Steve Clifford, who was his assistant coach in Orlando, he’ll try to put those numbers to good use on his third team in three years.
In order to acquire the former eight-time all-star, the Hornets traded away Miles Plumlee and arguably their best shooter in Marco Belinelli, while taking on a slightly better second-round pick in the 2017 draft. While the value of the trade will depend on Howard’s production, the Hornets didn’t make any moves this off-season to complement their leader, and lone all-star, in Kemba Walker.
The six-foot point guard had another career year in 2016-17, averaging 23.2 points on 39.9 per cent shooting from beyond the three-point line. Heading into this season, the Hornets will need Walker to put on another Herculean effort. There will be no extra driving lanes, with Marvin Williams being their best three-point shooter in their starting five, asides from Walker, hitting 35 per cent of his attempts in 2016-17.
It’s a disappointing reality after going all in on players like Nicolas Batum, who’s out six to eight weeks with an elbow injury, and Williams in the 2016 off-season, investing a combined $174.5 million over the course of the next five seasons towards the two.
Their lottery pick in Malik Monk, who was drafted 11th overall, could provide a spark for the Hornets as a gifted scorer. But his defence doesn’t come anywhere near that of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist or Jeremy Lamb, who on the other hand don’t have his high ceiling on offence.
A healthy Cody Zeller should help the Hornets add some depth to their front line, alongside a stretch-five in Frank Kaminsky. But if they’re relying on Howard to become their difference-maker, his backup should be of little concern compared to everything else heading into the 2017-18 season.
Potential Breakout Player
If Jeremy Lamb continues to progress like he has over the course of the past two seasons, upping his scoring average to 9.7 points in 2016-17, the Hornets could see the 25-year-old wing have a breakout year.
Coach Clifford has said that he’s excited to see Lamb’s role this season after the work he put in over the summer, which has reportedly rubbed off on his teammates. His progress should help him become more of a consistent threat, with the Hornets lacking a true two-way threat off their bench.
The biggest inconsistency in Lamb’s game is his three-point shooting, only converting on 28.1 per cent of his attempts last season. It might just be a matter of getting more touches, as when Lamb took a career-high in attempts in 2013-14, he also hit his highest clip of 35.6 per cent from beyond the arc.
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What a successful 2017-18 would look like
A successful year for the Hornets would see them return to the playoffs, and hit the 45-win mark like they did in 2015-16.
If you want to be optimistic: Steve Clifford has shuffled back-and-forth between sub and plus .500 seasons throughout his first four years at the helm of Charlotte’s bench. After falling to a 36-46 record in 2016-17, it could mean a bounce-back year in a conference where a team needs to win just a little more than half their games to make the playoffs.
But if Charlotte’s going to get there, they’ll need a better year from Nicolas Batum, who despite averaging a career-high 15.1 points a game, shot just 40.3 per cent from the field after signing a five-year deal worth $120 million. While he makes his way back from injury, the Hornets will need an improved performance from Marvin Williams, who hit a career-low 42.2 per cent of his attempts last season.
Biggest X-Factor
The Hornets are at their best when they don’t have to rely on Kemba Walker as their only primary ball handler, like in 2015-16 when they had Jeremy Lin off the bench. This year, they’ll be looking for that same type of spark from either former 2013-14 Rookie of the Year winner Michael Carter-Williams or current rookie Malik Monk.
The former is making his way back from a knee injury, and looks to be on one of his final threads after signing a one-year deal worth $2.7 million this summer. Carter-Williams has watched his scoring average drop each year in the league, making his way from 16.7 points as part of the 76ers to 6.6 points as part of the Bulls. Perhaps having a slightly older mentor in Walker can help him find his calling in the league.
The latter is a dynamic scorer, who averaged 19.7 points on 49.7 per cent shooting from the field and 39.7 per cent from the college three-point line while at Kentucky. Those numbers might jump off the page, but it’s important to remember that he’s also just a rookie who’ll be playing at the NBA’s most stacked position. At the same time, he’ll also benefit while playing under the wing of Walker, who made his first all-star appearance in 2016-17.
