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Charlotte Hornets: Examining Frank Kaminsky’s Fit & Future

By Nathan Giese

Jun 25, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number nine overall pick to the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 25, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number nine overall pick to the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 6, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Frank Kaminsky (44) blocks a shot by Duke Blue Devils guard Tyus Jones (5) during the first half in the 2015 NCAA Men’s Division I Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 6, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Wisconsin Badgers forward Frank Kaminsky (44) blocks a shot by Duke Blue Devils guard Tyus Jones (5) during the first half in the 2015 NCAA Men’s Division I Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

The Negatives:

Of course, the Kaminsky-Charlotte relationship isn’t exactly perfect. There are a number of holes in it that will need to be addressed both by Kaminsky and by the team moving forward.

Lack Of Defensive Output:

For all of Kaminsky’s offensive skills, his defense hasn’t caught up to him, sort of the opposite of what the Hornets dealt with last year. Wisconsin was heavily dependent on defense, but Kaminsky wasn’t really at the forefront of it. It was mostly about discipline and not fouling.

He’s a liability on defense, which will put more pressure on the likes of Jefferson to cover up for him in the paint. Kaminsky’s not exceptionally fast or quick and gets beat off the dribble frequently. He’s not terrible, but he’s not particularly good.

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    • Perhaps this is the Hornets embracing their weaknesses and moving towards a new system, one that focuses on offense a bit more than the defense. If it is, then Frank The Tank’s a great fit, but it seems unlikely that, given the makeup of the team, that Charlotte is abandoning the defense-first model, which is what makes the draft pick questionable.

    Big Ten Big Men Love:

    The selection of Kaminsky is the third straight top-10 draft pick used by the Hornets on a big man from the Big Ten. Surely this can’t be a coincidence. Had Indiana had a big man declare for the draft this year, I’m sure Michael Jordan would’ve been convinced he’s the next guy to get a shot.

    It seems odd to triple up on one position in consecutive years from the same conference no less. Well, Philadelphia did it too, but at least they went through three different conferences in those three years to do it.

    On the plus side here, Kaminsky is a completely different player from the Zeller and Vonleh picks, so it could be a coincidence in conference, but we’ve now seen three straight years of big men picked in the top 10 by Charlotte. Vonleh has already been moved and Zeller could be on his way out as well.

    Is it really the players’ fault they didn’t work out, or is it just a bad system to develop big men in?

    Next: The Future

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