After their first season without Kemba Walker, here are five roster moves the Charlotte Hornets must make this offseason.
Thanks to the poor play of the Washington Wizards in the NBA bubble the Charlotte Hornets moved from 10th in the East to ninth, without playing a game. Fortunately for the Hornets this had no negative impact on their position in the draft.
In fact, the Hornets moved all the way up to pick number three in the 2020 NBA draft. This has the potential to be a huge boost to a team that has been in the middle of the pack, outside the playoffs more often than not.
The Hornets have only made the playoffs three times since 2004-05. Each time they have made the postseason in this period they have been bounced in the first round. They have been middle of the road too long and need to have lucky breaks like this.
How did the Charlotte Hornets do in their first season without Kemba Walker?
Since Kemba Walker was traded to the Boston Celtics in the sign and trade deal involving Terry Rozier, a question mark has hung over the Hornets. The fact that they were able to finish ninth in the East is a testament to the quality of their playing group and coaching staff.
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Devonte’ Graham and Rozier were a tremendous, yet undersized pairing in the Hornet backcourt. They combined for 36.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 11.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game. This is a solid return for two players in their first year together.
There is hope for the future with both Malik Monk and P.J. Washington developing further into the players they are going to be in the NBA. As both are aged 22, they are in the same age group as Graham who is 24 and Rozier who is 25.
Also in this age group are both Caleb Martin and Cody Martin who are 24 and Miles Bridges who is 22. This is a tremendous core that the Hornets front office can continue to add to in seasons to come. This leads us to the five roster moves the Charlotte Hornets need to make this offseason.