Charlotte Hornets: Could Jeff Taylor Be The Missing Link?
Jeff Taylor has become the forgotten man in Charlotte. Having now served his 24-game suspension for domestic assault charges, he has been eligible to return since Wednesday night’s game against the Phoenix Suns.
Taylor has yet to be activated since his reinstatement, which is largely due to the fact that he hasn’t played in an NBA game in a calendar year. He probably won’t play for at least a few weeks because of this. He’ll need to get some practice time in before Steve Clifford will feel comfortable with him on the floor.
Just look at how Clifford has eased Michael Kidd-Gilchrist back into action — and he only missed 12 games.
When Jeff Taylor makes his eventual return, he just might be exactly what this disappointing Charlotte Hornets team needs.
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The three-point shot has been a hot topic in the Queen City. They need more of it on offense, and less of it on defense.
Coming into Friday night’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers, the Hornets were ranked a measly 29th in three-point shooting percentage at 31.3 percent. They’re also 28th in three-pointers made per game, and 26th in three-pointers attempted.
That tells it all right there; when it comes the three-point shot, the Charlotte Hornets aren’t taking them, and when they do, they aren’t making them.
The defensive rankings are almost the exact same. The Hornets are 26th in defensive three-point percentage and opponent three-pointers made. In short, their opponents are taking threes and making them.
So let’s sum this up real quick. The Hornets are one of the five worst teams in the NBA in scoring threes, and they’re one of the five worst at defending threes. For those of you that may be unfamiliar with the game of basketball, that’s a terrible combination.
This has played a big part, if not the biggest part, in all of the blown leads for the Hornets. Already this season, the Hornets have surrendered multiple double-digit leads in the second half — some of which were 20-plus point leads.
So what does that mean in terms of personnel? It means they need a player that can specialize in the three-and-D role.
Enter Jeff Taylor.
Jeff Taylor still has a lot to prove considering he has missed about as many games as he has played during his career, but he’s shown flashes of potential. During his rookie season, Taylor shot 43.1 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from long range in 77 games.
He was particularly adept at making the corner three — something that can really space the floor, which has been an issue for the Hornets. There is no one that has played for the Hornets this year that has garnered any attention from the corner, so Taylor would certainly be welcomed in that department.
His shooting percentage dipped in his second season, but he didn’t really play enough games to have an opportunity to work through the slump.
Taylor also proved to be an above-average perimeter defender. Assuming he can build upon his early successes, Charlotte could have one of the best defending tandems at the small forward position with Taylor and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. That’s important with guys like LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony in the Eastern Conference.
Maybe most importantly, Jeff Taylor’s defense would give Steve Clifford the opportunity to play a defensive-oriented lineup in late-game situations without completely sacrificing outside scoring.
Only time will tell if Jeff Taylor will be able to provide solid minutes for the Hornets. Often times the unknown seems a lot better than it turns out to be, so this may just be hopeful speculation.
But what if it’s not? What if Taylor comes in and is the missing link to this struggling team. It’s certainly not outside the scope of possibility.
Despite a record of 7-19, the Charlotte Hornets are still very much in the playoff race. They’ve already played both games against four tough Western Conference teams and are finally hitting the lighter portion of their schedule. Plus, you’re almost never out of things in the Eastern Conference (unless you happen to be the 76ers).
One new piece to the puzzle might be just what the Hornets need to turn their season around.