Kampfgeist Posted May 21, 2021 Share Posted May 21, 2021 I want to be positive about the team "almost" making the Playoffs, but the play-in games are really misleading. End-of-the-day this team finished 10th in the East which I think is a major disappointment. Yes, they dealt with injuries but they had all but Hayward in their final stretch run and had a major regression and then faced an Indiana squad in even worse shape and got embarrassed once again on national tv. It was tough roller coaster ride this season, from riding the highs and watching the team challenge for the 4-6 seeds (maybe the EXPECTATION of finishing 4-6 seed) to watching them plummet after the rash of injuries and Rozier getting overworked in the process. Just a brutal last month really sucked the helium out of this team's rise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted May 23, 2021 Author Share Posted May 23, 2021 I mean we still surpassed our win total by far and our young players got lots of experience. Most people would call that a success. You can say that a full team probably makes the playoffs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted June 17, 2021 Author Share Posted June 17, 2021 LaMelo officially wins ROY. Not sure why people are so surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kampfgeist Posted June 26, 2021 Share Posted June 26, 2021 Any post-lottery thoughts on #11 @Supersuavesky? Any lottery crushes or hopefuls? Position to draft C or SG/SF or other? Taking out the presumptive top 4, I still have a list of like 10-12 guys I'd be okay with at #11 and having a hard time narrowing it down as I feel like this team can go in so many directions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYRaider Posted June 26, 2021 Share Posted June 26, 2021 5 minutes ago, Kampfgeist said: Any post-lottery thoughts on #11 @Supersuavesky? Any lottery crushes or hopefuls? Position to draft C or SG/SF or other? Taking out the presumptive top 4, I still have a list of like 10-12 guys I'd be okay with at #11 and having a hard time narrowing it down as I feel like this team can go in so many directions. You guys need some legit size down low badly. I think Kai Jones would be an excellent pick for you guys. He is raw offensively and definitely needs to get stronger but he has a ton of upside. I think he'd thrive playing in an uptempo system with LaMelo as a lob threat and has the tools to be a good rim protector as well. The two most intriguing things about Kai for me though are his potential as a shooter and his quickness/coordination which will allow him to switch well defensively. Alperen Sengun is another guy that could make sense for you guys although he's not the best athlete which might hurt him on the defensive end. He should be able to contribute as a scorer from day one and his shooting range should increase as well. But I think it's reasonable to expect that he's a Nurkic type player in the league, which isn't terrible, but also isn't a great piece either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted June 26, 2021 Author Share Posted June 26, 2021 (edited) 35 minutes ago, Kampfgeist said: Any post-lottery thoughts on #11 @Supersuavesky? Any lottery crushes or hopefuls? Position to draft C or SG/SF or other? Taking out the presumptive top 4, I still have a list of like 10-12 guys I'd be okay with at #11 and having a hard time narrowing it down as I feel like this team can go in so many directions. We can go so many different directions that's it's hard to get a lock on. I like Jackson and Sengun the most out of the potential bigs for the opposite reasons but I think one will be taken too high and one would be expected to be a reach for where we pick. We can also go with another wing for depth; having the Martin twins and potentially Kulboka shouldn't really factor in there. Or maybe we draft another guard. I know they like Rillard a lot as a potential back up PG but there isn't anything wrong with using that pick to ensure yourself. We can use a dedicated wing stopper so Moses Moody fits will. As does Keon Johnson for his physical upside. Maybe they take a swing at Cooper and go full on ball movement guards. Most likely one if not both Graham and Monk are gone. My initial guess is Monk based on his end of season interview. But he's younger and has much more upside, already a much better overall scorer than Graham. Then there is the potential moves that could be made with our VETS: They've been linked to about every potential big and Kupchack has outright said he knows there is a hole. I get the feeling they didn't expect for us to be as competitive as we were this past season, thus why we didn't try overly hard to fill the hole at the 5 in the off-season. But LaMelo and Bridges have obviously changed that timeline with their play. If either one takes another step we have potential future all-stars. With that in mind they may take a drastic approach. I can see them moving one of Rozier or Hayward if they can't find an easier path: Hayward, injuries aside, showed he can still be a high level contributor and many teams would kill to have do it all scoring wing who shoots strong percentages. A team like GS or Miami would love to have him. And Rozier is entering the last year of his contract. That's an expiring which also comes with one year of potential production from one of the better SGs in the NBA. He can handle the ball in a pinch and more importantly has put in two straight seasons of elite deep shooting. Then there is the clutch aspect to account for. He would probably net a nice price and the Hornets could part with him based on who they draft or re-sign at the guards. He'll be looking for a payday next off-season and I doubt they'd be inclined to give it to him with Bridges becoming a restricted FA and Ball being a year away from an extension. They tried to offer PJ Washington and Zeller during the season and while Zeller is not on the books anymore I can see Washington being packaged with the pick for a better piece. So overall I have no idea where we go at this point. Edited June 26, 2021 by Supersuavesky typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kampfgeist Posted June 28, 2021 Share Posted June 28, 2021 Great points. Agree with all of it. It's really hard to figure out the direction they'll go without knowing their plans for Graham and Monk. If they lose both Monk or Graham then I'd be in favor of drafting a combo guard w scoring potential (Bouknight, Keon Johnson, Springer, Mann). I like Riller as a back-of-roster guy and 3rd option but I'd really like a higher ceiling guy and to keep the cupboard full of top guard play. Hopefully Riller can develop enough to keep us from having to sign the Wanamakers of the world though. If they lose just one of Graham/Monk then it's interesting but I still like the idea of adding a 2/3 - Moody tops my board if with those named above if we lose Monk but retain Graham. If somehow they retain both than there's just no playing time to get any new guard addition any playing time Just as hard to figure out their direction given the inclusion of Rozier and Hayward on the roster. If they plan to keep those two this season, then the plan has to be to challenge for a 4-6 seed and suddenly I'm okay with adding the top shooter in the draft - Kispert. The thought of adding a Joe Harris, Cam Johnson, Buddy Hield, Bogdanovic type to our roster with only the #11 pick appeals to me. Interestingly, if they keep this roster intact they have the cap space to add a Holmes or Allen AND maybe a Noel as well and I don't see a reason they couldn't compete with ATL or any non-Nets team in the East Personally however I'm in favor of them maximizing Rozier's last two years and trying to add more young talent/picks to the roster. I don't like the idea of signing a smaller guard to a long big money extension. I want to see this team get bigger, more athletic at key positions, not smaller. I'm good with the team moving Hayward too. I think Kupchak's too risk adverse (the anti Presti) to make those moves though. We need a Center but I don't think Borrego has any faith at all in young bigs...or older ones for that matter. He has no patience for the position and no interest in playing young guys. ie: Vernon Carey starts against the Nets, plays 34 minutes, goes 21/6 with a +14 +/- and never sees the court again. As long as Borrego is coach I think any young C is 3 years away from helping this team in any meaningful, consistent manner We are in a unique position for a Hornets team. As things stand now, we don't NEED the #11 pick to come in and save this franchise and play big minutes like Bridges, Washington, Ball. Any player we bring in, with the exception of a player like Kispert will be expected to star in the G-League next season, not for the Hornets. That changes quickly if we lose Monk AND Bridges 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kampfgeist Posted June 28, 2021 Share Posted June 28, 2021 Interesting question: Is this team far enough along with established vets like Rozier and Hayward, a potential franchise cornerstone in Ball, a budding fringe All-Star level talent in Bridges and a still developing PJ Washington to look at a player in the draft that can help the TEAM best or are they still in the position of trying to find a #2, #3 talent to complement Ball and be a franchise cornerstone. Should that always be the use of the lottery? I don't think the 2nd option has been Kupchak's modus operandi as Bridges/Washington were more considered high floor, low ceiling guys and not swing-at-the-fence types and the 2nd rounders have primarily been older, experienced guys I ask that because I think players like Wagner or Kispert would be excellent additions to complement the team and be high level role players over long careers. I think they've been criminally underrated by amateur draftniks like myself as most low ceiling but high level floors guys tend to be. Quintessential 4th/5th options but never All-Star level. Adding a prime Batum or Huerter level talent in Wagner could be a great use of the #11 pick. These guys are over the Bucks, Hawks, Clippers rosters. Likewise adding a/the top shooter in the draft - a Joe Harris, Buddy Hield type in Kispert also seems great the way the team is constructed now. Could increase Ball's assist numbers, expand floor spacing for others and be an absolute killer as a trailer in transition. However, a team like CHA aren't competing for top FA above the Hayward tier and even with him we had to drastically overpay. Should we use the lottery on bigger swing, high ceiling, low floor guys like the Bouknight / Kai Jones / Keon Johnson / Jalen Johnson / Zhiaire Williams / JT Thor types? Guys that could be perennial All-Star talents but could also max as a current Malik Monk-level talent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted June 29, 2021 Author Share Posted June 29, 2021 3 hours ago, Kampfgeist said: Interesting question: Is this team far enough along with established vets like Rozier and Hayward, a potential franchise cornerstone in Ball, a budding fringe All-Star level talent in Bridges and a still developing PJ Washington to look at a player in the draft that can help the TEAM best or are they still in the position of trying to find a #2, #3 talent to complement Ball and be a franchise cornerstone. Should that always be the use of the lottery? I don't think the 2nd option has been Kupchak's modus operandi as Bridges/Washington were more considered high floor, low ceiling guys and not swing-at-the-fence types and the 2nd rounders have primarily been older, experienced guys I ask that because I think players like Wagner or Kispert would be excellent additions to complement the team and be high level role players over long careers. I think they've been criminally underrated by amateur draftniks like myself as most low ceiling but high level floors guys tend to be. Quintessential 4th/5th options but never All-Star level. Adding a prime Batum or Huerter level talent in Wagner could be a great use of the #11 pick. These guys are over the Bucks, Hawks, Clippers rosters. Likewise adding a/the top shooter in the draft - a Joe Harris, Buddy Hield type in Kispert also seems great the way the team is constructed now. Could increase Ball's assist numbers, expand floor spacing for others and be an absolute killer as a trailer in transition. However, a team like CHA aren't competing for top FA above the Hayward tier and even with him we had to drastically overpay. Should we use the lottery on bigger swing, high ceiling, low floor guys like the Bouknight / Kai Jones / Keon Johnson / Jalen Johnson / Zhiaire Williams / JT Thor types? Guys that could be perennial All-Star talents but could also max as a current Malik Monk-level talent I think they're still acquiring talent. They probably realize that keeping Rozier and Hayward long term aren't going to fit with the other contracts coming up so they'll probably still take upside over fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kampfgeist Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 Bouknight, Kai Jones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seminoles1 Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 Great draft for you guys. I'm a huge Bouknight fan and very mad Memphis passed on him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kampfgeist Posted July 30, 2021 Share Posted July 30, 2021 One more depth piece coming up at #37 - going to get a good prospect there with the first round just wrapping up. Filled a veteran C contributor need relatively inexpensively with Mason Plumlee too at $8.9mil so we aren't left scrambling or forced to make a dumb move. Wonder if he stays or gets moved again? Draft night is a big win in my book. If we can bring back Graham and land another (better) center in FA the offseason will have been a homerun. We'll keep the option of moving Rozier, Hayward and Plumlee at the trade deadline if the season goes sideways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted July 30, 2021 Author Share Posted July 30, 2021 Four picks. All surrounding upside. I like this draft a lot. We might not see Graham or Monk back and I would be surprised if we had Rozier this time next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersuavesky Posted September 12, 2021 Author Share Posted September 12, 2021 Putting in the off-season work. Excited for the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYRaider Posted September 12, 2021 Share Posted September 12, 2021 You guys will have a fun team this year, assuming the depth chart will be... PG - Ball | Smith SG - Rozier | Bouknight SF - Oubre | Bridges | Martin PF - Hayward | McDaniels | Thor C - Washington | Plumlee | Jones | Carey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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