This NBA season has gone the polar opposite of preseason expectations for the Charlotte Hornets. With an 11-24 record and injuries all over the roster, making a postseason push looks more like a dream than a reality.
The Hornets are in danger of becoming one of those teams stuck in the dreaded middle-zone. By that, I mean they aren’t good enough to make the playoffs, but they aren’t bad enough to get a high draft pick. The NBA is different in that if you’re not good, you’re better off being really bad – which is where tanking comes in to play.
Most years, Charlotte’s season would be long over. This is not most years. While the Eastern Conference is almost always the weaker conference, it’s really weak this year.
Coming into Sunday’s games, only five teams in the East had more wins than losses. Yes, I said only five – Atlanta, Toronto, Chicago, Washington, and Cleveland.
Even with 11 wins, the Charlotte Hornets are only 3.5 games back of a playoff spot. Need some perspective? The Hornets would be about eight games out of the playoffs in the West.
You’re probably thinking, “What’s the point of making the playoffs if you’ll just get swept in the first round?” I’ll tell you.
No one in the East is really all that dominant. Yes, Toronto is solid, Atlanta has been a huge surprise, and Chicago is really turning it on, but they can all be beaten.
The Hornets have shown they can hang with the elite teams of the league, it’s just a matter of finishing the job off – something that can be fixed midseason.
Plus, they have been littered with injuries and suspensions, so we really haven’t seen this team as a whole unit yet. If everyone is back and this team begins to gel at the right time, they could be dangerous in the playoffs. This is basically what has happened to Carolina Panthers, so maybe it’s a North Carolina thing?
Now you’re probably wondering what all of this has to do with Lance Stephenson (yes, I can read your mind). I’ll tell you that as well.
By now, Stephenson’s market value is at an all-time low. While that’s bad for the organization, it’s really bad for Mr. Stephenson. Why? His contract.
Over the summer, Lance Stephenson signed a three-year contract worth about $9 million per year with a team option in the final year (meaning after two seasons, the Hornets can terminate his contract, making him a free agent). You can find a more detailed breakdown of his contract here.
The significance of this contract is that Stephenson was betting on himself when he agreed to it. If he doesn’t perform, he loses out on money he would have gotten had he stayed with the Indiana Pacers.
Regardless of how his short tenure in Charlotte has been, you better believe this will be a motivating factor for him to find a way to turn things around. If he does, things will likely turn around for the Hornets as well.
Since the Charlotte Hornets likely won’t finish with that high of a draft pick, they’d be better off holding on to their younger pieces for at least one more season — including Lance Stephenson.
Another offseason of working together coupled with the growth of players like Cody Zeller and Noah Vonleh could produce results that were expected in Charlotte this season.
If the Hornets prematurely dish Stephenson out at a low price, that could be the end of any “big name” free agents signing in Charlotte for a while – particularly since it’s already a small-market city.
There’s really nothing to lose at this point, so why not just hang on to him and see if he turns into the start that was expected?