Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves Convert Amile Jefferson To Standard Contract

April 11th, 2018 at 2:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have converted Amile Jefferson‘s two-way contract to a standard NBA deal, the team announced today in a press release. The move ensures that the rookie forward will be eligible to play in the postseason, assuming Minnesota earns a spot.

Jefferson, who turns 25 next month, went undrafted out of Duke in 2017 and joined the Timberwolves for training camp. After being waived by the team prior to the start of the regular season, Jefferson headed to the Iowa Wolves for the 2017/18 season. He remained there all year, never appearing in a game for the NBA squad even after signing a two-way contract in January.

In 47 G League games, Jefferson averaged 17.8 PPG and 12.8 RPG for Iowa, making shots at a 62.4% rate. He set a new NBAGL record by racking up 36 double-doubles.

Minnesota still had an open spot on its 15-man squad, so no corresponding roster move was required to make room for Jefferson. With the Cavs, Lakers, Clippers, and Raptors having also made moves to fill their roster openings in recent days, the Hornets and Wizards are the only two teams that still have open spots. It’s not clear if Washington intends to sign a 15th man by the end of the day — Charlotte’s season ended on Tuesday, so the Hornets will head into the offseason without a full roster.

New Hornets GM Mitch Kupchak Talks Rebuilding, Kemba, Analytics, Draft

April 10th, 2018 at 7:26pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Hornets appear to be stuck in the NBA’s no-man’s land—too good to get a top lottery pick, yet not good enough to make a real dent in the conference’s playoff race. However, despite the status, new GM Mitch Kupchak isn’t ready to undergo a full rebuild, as Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer relays.

“I don’t know the ins and outs much. I don’t know if that is the right word or not. To sit here and say this is a team that needs to be rebuilt, I don’t know if that’s fair,” Kupchak said at today’s introductory press conference.

The GM added he hasn’t made a decision yet on the status of coach Steve Clifford and that he doesn’t feel pressure to trade Kemba Walker.

“I don’t think [his distaste for losing is] something to overreact to. I want a player who doesn’t want to lose. That’s a good thing. I’m aware of [Walker’s comments]. Over the next several days, I will have player interviews. My understanding is he has another year under contract. It’s clearly a very favorable contract [for the team, at $12MM], but he’s going to be just fine going forward. I’m very aware of his talent. From what I hear, he’s great in the locker room and great in the community. I don’t know why you wouldn’t want that going forward.”

Kupchak talked about his approach to analytics, telling the media that if all others things are equal in evaluating a player, he’s trusting his instincts over the numbers.

“Gut instinct has been a big part of talent evaluation: watching the player, watching the player walking to the bench, how he interacts with the coach. Scouting games in person. Those things are the biggest,” he said. “Over the last 15 years, with the introduction of cameras on top of each building basically like GPS, it’s created a whole new form of data. That creates so much data every night; data uploaded every night and you have to have people to evaluate that data. That’s how the business has really changed.

“Every GM is different [as far as] confirming your instincts as a GM. If it ever was a tie I’d always go to my instincts. Might be 70-30 or 60-40.”

Charlotte is currently slotted to pick 11th in the upcoming draft, as our Reverse Standings indicate. In picking that far down the lottery, Kupchak believes the obvious strategy is simply taking the best available player.

“If we’re picking around 10 or 11, you would almost always go with the best player. If it was close, you might go with position. But you can always trade players if you have duplication,” he said.

Buzz Peterson Will Remain in Front Office

April 8th, 2018 at 6:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Selfish play has put the Wizards in a tailspin, coach Scott Brooks told Candace Buckner of the Washington Post and other media members. Washington lost to the lottery-bound Hawks on Friday and have fallen to the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference standings. “Not passing the ball to one another. Simple as that,” Brooks said. “Nobody wanted to share the basketball (Friday). When you do that you end up taking bad shots. When you take bad shots, you end up missing. Simple game.” The Wizards have also ranked last in defensive field goal percentage since February 28th, Buckner points out.

In other developments around the Southeast Division:

The Magic were devastated by injuries this season but that excuse may not be enough for coach Frank Vogel to retain his job, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Vogel has not received a public vote of confidence since the All-Star break and team president Jeff Weltman wouldn’t comment last month on his coach’s job security, Robbins continues. Team CEO Alex Martins was also evasive this weekend when asked Vogel’s status, saying only “We don’t deal with those issues until the season’s over,” Robbins adds.
Buzz Peterson, the Hornets interim GM, is expected to maintain a significant role in the front office under new president and GM Mitch Kupchak, Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports tweets. Peterson had served as the interim GM after Rich Cho was fired. Kupchak was officially hired on Sunday.
Wizards forward Markieff Morris was fined $15,000 by the league for “inappropriate comments” toward an official Friday night, according to an ESPN report. Morris made the comments when he was ejected during the first quarter against the Hawks.
Magic swingman Terrence Ross returned to action on Sunday night at Toronto after a lengthy absence, Robbins tweets. The former Raptor had not played since November 29th due to a knee injury and a subsequent bone bruise.

Hornets Hire Mitch Kupchak As President, GM

April 8th, 2018 at 5:14pm CST by marksuleymanov

5:14pm: The Hornets have officially named Kupchak their president of basketball operations and general manager, per a team press release.

3:58pm: The Hornets and Mitch Kupchak have agreed to a deal that will make him the president and general manager of the organization, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. A press conference will be held sometime next week to introduce Kupchak, Wojnarowski notes.

A report earlier this week noted that the Hornets formally offered the vacant position to Kupchak. In addition to Kupchak, the Hornets interviewed several other candidates, including Rockets executive VP of basketball operations Gersson Rosas, Sixers VP of player personnel Marc Eversley and Heat assistant GM Adam Simon.

Charlotte started their search for a new general manager after informing Rich Cho he wouldn’t be retained back in February. Cho, who was also the GM of the Trail Blazers, took over the job for Charlotte in 2011.

Kupchak, a three-time NBA champion as a player, took over the Lakers’ basketball operations job in the summer of 2000. He helped lead Los Angeles to four NBA championships in that stretch. Kupchak revitalized the team with a major trade for Pau Gasol in 2008, which led to back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010.

In recent years, the Lakers entered a rebuilding stage with acquisitions such as Steve Nash and Dwight Howard not panning out. Kupchak was relieved of his duties in February 2017 as the Lakers underwent a front office overhaul.

As Wojnarowski writes, Kupchak and Hornets owner Michael Jordan — who favored Kupchak for the role — have a longstanding relationship built from their ties to the University of North Carolina and late coach Dean Smith.

Kupchak will be tasked with building a playoff-caliber team as the Hornets will miss the postseason for the second straight season. He will also have to work under monetary confines as the Hornets are capped out with every player except two ( Michael Carter-Williams and Treveon Graham) under contract for 2018/19.

NBA Teams That Still Have Open Roster Spots

April 6th, 2018 at 3:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Unless an NBA team is ravaged by injuries, it likely won’t use the 15th man on its roster very often. Many teams dedicate that spot to a prospect who spends much of his time in the G League rather than with the NBA squad. Other teams don’t even bother carrying a full 15-man roster, creating modest savings by not having to pay a player in that final slot.

Still, by the end of the regular season, most teams have filled their 15 roster spots in one way or another. If a club signs a player with one or two days left in the season, the money owed to that player for the current year is extremely minimal. Additionally, those deals often include non-guaranteed salaries for the following season, allowing a team to take an extended look at the player during the summer.

With six days left in the 2017/18 season, several teams still have open roster spots, but there’s a good chance that most – or all – of these clubs will fill those slots with free agents by next Wednesday.

Here are the teams that still have an open roster slot and are worth watching in the coming days:

Charlotte Hornets
Cleveland Cavaliers
- Note: The Cavs have two open roster spots and will need to sign at least one player before the regular season ends.
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Minnesota Timberwolves
Toronto Raptors
Washington Wizards

Bonnell, Marks Preview Hornets' Offseason

April 4th, 2018 at 12:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Assuming Mitch Kupchak accepts the Hornets‘ offer to become the team’s new general manager, he’ll have a busy summer ahead of him, according to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer, who says that the franchise’s rebuild can’t be put on hold. Determining whether to retain head coach Steve Clifford and then finding a way to get out from under one or two long-term contracts would be atop Kupchak’s to-do list, Bonnell observes.
ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link) takes a look at the Hornets‘ upcoming offseason as well, noting that Kemba Walker‘s future is a major question looming over the organization. Marks also identifies Jeremy Lamb as a possible trade candidate, since his salary is modest enough that teams wouldn’t view his contract as a negative asset.

Hornets Offer GM Job To Mitch Kupchak

April 2nd, 2018 at 9:33am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets have formally offered their open general manager job to former Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link). According to Stein, the Hornets are confident that they’ll be able to work out an agreement to bring Kupchak aboard. Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer echoes that sentiment, tweeting that it’s “basically a done deal.”

Charlotte has officially been on the lookout for a new general manager since informing Rich Cho he wouldn’t be retained back in February. However, even before then, Kupchak’s name was linked to the Hornets as a potential candidate to head the team’s basketball operations department. Kupchak had an existing relationship with Hornets controlling owner Michael Jordan, as both men attended the University of North Carolina.

While Kupchak was considered the frontrunner for the Hornets’ GM job throughout the search process, the team received permission to interview at least a few other candidates. Rockets executive VP of basketball operations Gersson Rosas was viewed as a serious contender for the position, and Sixers VP of player personnel Marc Eversley and Heat assistant GM Adam Simon were among Charlotte’s other potential targets. However, it appears the Hornets have chosen to offer the job to the candidate who has the most experience running a franchise.

A three-time champion as an NBA player, Kupchak assumed control of the Lakers’ basketball operations in the summer of 2000, and won four more titles as the general manager in Los Angeles. Kupchak made several key moves to help buoy the franchise to its most recent championships in 2009 and 2010, including trading for Pau Gasol.

Despite his solid overall résumé, many of Kupchak’s personnel decisions during his last several years in Los Angeles didn’t pan out. The acquisitions of Steve Nash and Dwight Howard in 2012 backfired, and the massive contracts handed out to Luol Deng and Timofey Mozgov in 2016 were among Kupchak’s most significant missteps. The longtime Lakers executive saw his tenure come to an end in February 2017, when the franchise replaced him and Jim Buss with Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka.

If Kupchak accepts the Hornets’ offer and joins the franchise as its general manager, he’s expected to work with Buzz Peterson, another UNC alum who is currently handling GM duties in Charlotte on an interim basis.

Hornets Notes: Howard, Hernangomez, Walker

April 1st, 2018 at 10:03pm CST by Austin Kent

The Hornets shouldn’t have any regrets when it comes to their offseason acquisition of Dwight Howard, but despite the 32-year-old veteran’s admirably productive season, the team should look into trading him, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes.

Howard has been impressively consistent and durable and the move that the club made to acquire him was worth the risk. Unfortunately for Hornets fans, Charlotte seems destined to rebuild, something that Howard may not be all that interested in and that his arduous $23.8MM 2018/19 contract may complicate.

In 76 games for the Hornets this season, Howard has averaged 16.8 points – his highest scoring output in four seasons – and 12.4 rebounds.

There’s more out of Charlotte tonight:

Midseason acquisition Willy Hernangomez has had his work cut out for him appeasing Hornets coach Steve Clifford but the young big man appears to be taking the constructive crticisim to heart, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes. “With every player, you have to find a way that you’re comfortable talking with them and they are comfortable talking with you. Serious players, they want a coach who can help them play better,” Clifford said.
A year of setbacks and injuries has continued into the final month of the regular season. Most recently, the Hornets have watched big man Cody Zeller shut things down for the remainder of the season. “I would say we’re at the stage now where it almost becomes, ‘Why [ask him to play]?‘” head coach Steve Clifford told Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. “It’s so hard to not play for long stretches off the season. Why, with five games left, would we even play him? It makes more sense to me to let him get back to 100 percent and then just start again next [season].”
A dramatic year has resulted in another disappointing, playoff-less season for the Hornets and now it seems as though Kemba Walker‘s future in Charlotte is far from certain. This week we asked readers what they think will come of Walker’s tenure with the organization. Could Hornets fans be nearing the end of an era?

Knicks Notes: Van Gundy, Hernangomez, Thomas, Burke

April 1st, 2018 at 11:03am CST by Arthur Hill

Jeff Van Gundy has been mentioned as a possible candidate if the Knicks make a coaching change, but his brother wonders how serious their interest is, relays Al Iannazzone of Newsday.

After his Pistons defeated New York Saturday, head coach Stan Van Gundy noted that the organization has only recently begun to acknowledge Jeff on the jumbotron when he comes to town to broadcast its games. He coached the Knicks for nearly seven seasons and took them to the NBA Finals in 1999. Stan compares Jeff’s situation to Patrick Ewing‘s.

“I used to walk in here and Patrick would be sitting next to me on the bench [as an assistant in Orlando] and they would put him up on the jumbotron and everyone would clap and then he could never get an interview for any freakin’ job they had,” Stan said. “That’s sort of fake appreciation in my opinion. I don’t know what it is in Jeff’s case. If it’s genuine appreciation then that’s great. If it’s just a way for them to appease their fans, a little bit different.”

There’s more today out of New York:

The Knicks will regret trading young center Willy Hernangomez for a pair of second-round picks, Iannazzone writes in a separate story. Hernangomez got a measure of revenge this week with 12 points and five rebounds in 17 minutes against his former team. “He’s been so much better,” Hornets coach Steve Clifford said. “What I’ve talked to him about is the team part. Everybody views player development as the shot, the post move, the one-on-one ‘iso’ play. None of that matters if the team can’t function when you’re out there.”
Another 50-loss season is taking its toll on Lance Thomas, notes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Thomas, who was acquired in a January 2015 trade, has been with the Knicks longer than anyone on the current roster. He’s also a native New Yorker who grew up in Brooklyn. “I hate losing,’’ he said after Saturday’s game. “Anyone who has God-given ability to make it to this level hates losing. Myself being the long-tenured Knick here, I’ve been part of some losing teams and it doesn’t sit well with me. I want to find a way to turn it around. I lose sleep when we lose.”
Trey Burke‘s connections with Knicks GM Scott Perry helped him earn another shot at the NBA, writes Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. Perry is a Detroit native and former assistant coach at the University of Michigan, where Burke played two seasons. They bonded over their Michigan connections while Burke was preparing for the 2013 draft and Perry was an executive in Orlando, so Burke reached out to him earlier this season when he was looking for a G League contract. “I knew that he would give me a fair shot, fair opportunity to reinvent myself,” Burke said, “to come in and go through a process where I would have an opportunity to play consistent minutes at the highest level.”

Dwayne Bacon Removed From Game With Sprained Ankle

March 31st, 2018 at 5:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hornets guard Dwayne Bacon was removed from today’s game with a right ankle sprain, the team tweeted. Further evaluation will be needed to determine the extent of the damage.