It is nearly there.
The gamers are again from their final summer time trip and the countdown to the Charlotte Hornets‘ To start with coaching camp below coach Charles Lee The sport is quick approaching. And there are many questions forward of the Hornets’ official follow at Duke College’s Michael W. Krzyzewski Middle on Oct. 1.
On this newest mailbag, we reply readers’ questions on key rotation battles, what to anticipate from the rookies, and what to anticipate from the rookies. Tidjane Salaünwhether or not Josh Inexperienced shall be within the beginning lineup and extra.
What are the keys? issues to search for in coaching camp?
@buzz_szn asks on X, previously referred to as Twitter: What are the largest place/rotation battles to observe?
We’ll dive deeper into this matter in our upcoming coaching camp preview, however there are two positions the place will probably be fascinating to see how issues play out. The primary is the guard rotation, particularly given the other ways Lee can deal with the backup guard spots. Will probably be particularly fascinating to observe how Lee mixes and matches his guard rotation, on condition that he has completely different choices with Tre Mann, Brandon Miller, Josh Inexperienced, and Vasa Micić.
The opposite spot is the ability ahead behind Miles Bridges. Beforehand, that they had the posh of placing PJ Washington in that spot, both with the beginning unit or as a backup. Now, there is no conventional energy ahead to play alongside Mark Williams. So what Lee does together with his forwards shall be one other factor to observe.
Will Tidjane Salaün contribute instantly?
David Inscoe asks on X: What are sensible expectations for Tidjane Salaün’s rookie season? Will he be a rotation participant by the tip of the yr?
There’s a little bit of a caveat right here, as there are nonetheless a variety of unknowns with the Hornets’ 2024 first-round decide. He’s nonetheless younger and desires time to develop, however the potential is there. In his restricted summer time league motion, he’s proven among the abilities that make him a doubtlessly attractive possibility. Nonetheless, at 18, he’s having to transition to a brand new tradition and work surroundings, whereas additionally adjusting extra to the best way the sport is performed on this aspect of the pond and the bodily nature of the NBA.
It is onerous to assume he’ll be part of the primary rotation instantly except there are accidents forward of him on the depth chart or he has an unimaginable preseason efficiency. There is a good probability Salaun shall be used particularly for defensive functions early on earlier than turning into a full-time member of the highest eight or 9 gamers in a rotation. However based mostly on early appears to be like, he has an opportunity to turn out to be an efficient participant at that degree.
Will Josh Inexperienced begin alongside LaMelo Ball?
ConversationAndHennessy asks on X: Is Josh Inexperienced positively planning to start out or is there competitors from Cody Martin and others?
Inexperienced is more likely to begin at guard alongside LaMelo Ball. He supplies a pleasant steadiness for the Hornets and may take among the stress off Ball by defending both guard, which might be an enormous asset given Ball’s penchant for selecting up fouls. On condition that Inexperienced can play a number of positions, it is going to give Lee choices, and having Inexperienced within the lineup early helps set the tone Lee is searching for on that finish of the ground.
What’s flawed with KJ Simpson?
Eric Scott Schaeffer asks on X: Is KJ Simpson Melo’s future substitute or is it another person? Will he dwell within the G League this yr?
Sure and sure. That is the thought course of. After they chosen Simpson, the Hornets have been trying extra towards the long run than the current. Sometimes, second-round picks take somewhat longer to develop than first-round picks, so to hurry up that course of, the Hornets will get Simpson with the Greensboro Swarmpermitting him to hone his G League abilities for many of the season.
With the Swarm, he has extra alternatives to be on the courtroom usually, which is the place you be taught finest quite than sitting on the bench watching the Hornets’ foremost roster play. The group values Simpson’s ardour and work ethic, and at present views him as a future backup level guard.
What are your finest reminiscences out of your time with the Hornets?
Miller Muse asks on X: What are your high 3 moments overlaying the Hornets?
Nice query, and a really troublesome one to slender down to a few. Watching spectacular comebacks on outside tracks might be actually cool, which is why the Hornets’ unlikely victory in Denver in 2021 You need to embrace him. It was the evening Kelly Oubre and P.J. Washington have been unconscious within the fourth quarter, serving to flip a 17-point deficit into an eight-point victory over the Nuggets. When Washington was requested why he was so scorching and what had gotten into him, he mentioned he was simply able to go house. And he wasn’t the one one, both, as a result of it was simply hours earlier than Christmas.
Quantity 2 can be Kemb Walker give it to Jimmy Butler in 2018. What an unimaginable efficiency and what a maddening evening contemplating the way it ended: Butler hit a shot to propel Philadelphia to a wild win.
And probably the most memorable second, even when it evokes heartburn for a lot of Hornets followers, occurred in 2016. It was at The Hornets’ ultimate playoff sport and the environment was loopy. The group was going wild and feeling victorious till, nicely, we all know what occurred, due to the man within the purple shirt in some folks’s eyes. However, yeah, it is the most effective half, and it is another excuse why it is a fairly convincing case that if the Hornets ever get their act collectively and make it again to the playoffs, this metropolis shall be off the charts with its depth.
A pleasant bonus second: an in-depth have a look at what it takes to be a mascot like Hugo. Tales like these are very nice to inform to readers.
