Charlotte Hornets: 3 goals for the final stretch of the season

Charlotte Hornets goal No. 1: Get in the passing lanes

The Hornets play a solid zone defense which seems to work for their team structure. They have some smaller guards who they can hide by running this defense. However, the zone is not an ideal defense for a league of professional 3-point shooters.

They only force 15.0 turnovers per game, which is only 25th in the league. On top of this, they only block 4.9 shots per game which is 15th in the league. When playoff basketball comes around, the game slows down and defense becomes a premium.

It is not as though the Hornets have the greatest offense, they only score 109.7 points per game which is only good for 22nd in the league. They are able to steal the ball 7.9 times per game, which is good for 11th in the league.

While some of these numbers are reasonable, the Hornets need to get into the passing lanes in order to get more transition points.  Opposition teams are getting 27.1 assists per game against the Hawks which is the worst in the league.

If the ball is moving that well against them during the regular season, then when the grind of the playoffs comes around the Hornets are in trouble. They are going to be facing the best teams in the league and need to slow them down somehow.