
15. Cody Zeller
Most casual NBA fans would probably be surprised to see the Charlotte Hornets‘ impressive 37-29 record and then realize that Cody Zeller has been the team’s starting center for 45 of those games, but it’s the truth. Perhaps Michael Jordan wasn’t as foolish to take him in the 2013 NBA Draft as so many people thought?
Okay, so maybe taking him fourth overall — ahead of Alex Len, Nerlens Noel, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, C.J. McCollum, Steven Adams and Giannis Antetokounmpo — was less than ideal, but Zeller has been decent enough in his third NBA season, averaging 9.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while shooting 51 percent from the floor.
He’s hardly thought of as a defensive stalwart, but the Hornets do rank ninth in defensive efficiency. Zeller doesn’t have three-point range, nor is he much of a rim protector, but he’s done what Steve Clifford has asked of him as the team’s starting center.
Cody Zeller runs the pick n roll well, runs the floor extremely well, cuts, just a great off-ball big.
— Josh Eberley 🇨🇦 (@JoshEberley) March 12, 2016
Next: No. 14