Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Hornets Notes: No. 2 Pick, Miller, Henderson, Bridges, Jordan

May 23rd, 2023 at 1:02pm CST by Luke Adams

It was difficult to find even one NBA executive at the draft combine in Chicago who believes that G League Ignite Scoot Henderson will be the pick at No. 2 in the draft over Alabama forward Brandon Miller, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Insider link). Still, as he stated last week on Zach Lowe’s podcast, Givony isn’t quite ready to lock in Miller as the Hornets‘ choice at No. 2.

According to Givony, Hornets president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak weighs individual team workouts more heavily than many executives, and there’s a possibility Henderson will have a more impressive workout than Miller, who has been recovering from mononucleosis and has lost 13 pounds since the end of the NCAA season, per agent Wilmer Jackson. After meeting with a dozen teams at the combine, including the Hornets, Miller intends to fly to Charlotte in mid-June for a workout and a second interview, says Givony.

The Hornets are also doing due diligence into Miller’s connection to a fatal January shooting, sending their own attorneys to Tuscaloosa this week to look into the matter, Givony writes. Team executives at the combine said that Miller had a legal brief written by his lawyers advising clubs that the 20-year-old wouldn’t be able to comment on specific details related to that case due to ongoing legal proceedings.

According to Givony, some teams have concerns about how possible lawsuits or follow-up investigations into the incident could impact Miller, but Jackson insists his client is “free and clear” of any wrongdoing.

“The case is still open, and Brandon has had limited communication for that reason,” Jackson said. “He’s been cleared from day one. We were told by the attorneys not to speak about the situation. At the right time we can have that conversation, but for now, we’re leaving it alone and will let the process complete itself.”

Here’s more on the Hornets:

G League Ignite Anthony McClish has nothing but praise for Henderson, who in turn seems genuinely excited about the Hornets’ core and the possibility of playing in Charlotte, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. “He’s going to be loved by coaches, he’s going to be loved by teammates, he’s going to be loved by fans and youth in the community,” McClish said of Henderson, who spent two seasons with the Ignite. “He’s uplifted our building. He’s been our beacon of what we want to have as an example, in terms of our values and carrying a program.”
After sitting out last season due to his domestic violence case, former Hornets forward Miles Bridges will once again be a restricted free agent this offseason, assuming Charlotte reissues a qualifying offer. The Hornets’ front office would like to have Bridges back on the roster next season, sources tell Givony.
Since a March report indicated that Michael Jordan was mulling the possibility of selling his majority stake in the Hornets, there have been few updates. According to Givony, one reason for the delay is that Jordan was waiting to see if Charlotte would land the No. 1 overall pick before making any decisions. It’s unclear if – or how – snagging the No. 2 pick might affect Jordan’s plans, or when a potential sale might occur, Givony says.

Hornets Bring In Six Prospects For Workouts

May 22nd, 2023 at 6:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets held a pre-draft workout for six prospects on Monday, the team tweets. Baylor’s Jalen Bridges, Akron’s Xavier Castaneda, Pittsburgh’s Nelly Cummings, Miami’s Jordan Miller, Appalachian State’s Tamell Pearson and Kansas State’s Nae’Qwan Tomlin were the visitors.

Poll: Who Should Hornets Draft With No. 2 Pick?

May 21st, 2023 at 11:13am CST by Luke Adams

They’ll miss out on generational prospect Victor Wembanyama, but the Hornets still had a great night on Tuesday at the draft lottery, moving up from No. 4 in the pre-lottery standings to nab the No. 2 overall pick.

Given that Wembanyama is a lock to be drafted first overall, Charlotte can prepare for draft knowing that every other player in this year’s class will be available after San Antonio makes its selection. There shouldn’t be any surprises for the Hornets, so assuming they keep their pick, it’s simply a matter of deciding which non-Wembanyama prospect they like the best.

That list figures to start with two players: G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and Alabama wing Brandon Miller.

When the 2022/23 season began, Henderson was widely considered a close runner-up to Wembanyama among this year’s top prospects — the two players were in a tier of their own, with Henderson viewed as a prospect who would be a worthy No. 1 overall pick in most years. He’s an explosive guard with excellent court vision who can be a primary play-maker on offense and shows plenty of promise as a backcourt defender.

However, Henderson had an up-and-down season with the Ignite, struggling with his shot in 19 regular season G League games — he made just 42.9% of his attempts from the field, including 27.5% of his three-pointers. Throw in the fact that the Hornets’ incumbent franchise player – LaMelo Ball – is a lead guard and you could make the case that Henderson might not be the best match for Charlotte.

If they’re not sold on Henderson, the Hornets’ top choice may be Miller, whose stock rose substantially over the course of the NCAA season. When Jonathan Givony of ESPN published a mock draft last October, Miller was the No. 19 pick, but the 6’9″ forward had a huge year for the Crimson Tide, averaging 18.8 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 2.1 APG while making 38.4% of his 7.5 three-point attempts per game.

In Givony’s most recent mock draft, he has Miller going to the Hornets at No. 2, writing that the 20-year-old’s ability to shoot, facilitate, and defend multiple positions makes him the “archetypal player every NBA team is currently searching for.”

While Miller is probably the better positional fit for Charlotte, his long-term ceiling may fall short of Henderson’s, and any franchise that drafts him will want to learn all it can about his character off the court. Miller was involved in a troubling story in Tuscaloosa over the winter, having brought former Alabama teammate Darius Miles the gun that was used in the killing of Jamea Jonae Harris.

Miller, who insisted that he didn’t know the gun was in the car, wasn’t charged with a crime and was described as a cooperative witness in the case. So while NBA executives will have plenty of questions for the Alabama wing about the incident, there has been a sense that it won’t hurt his draft stock.

“I don’t believe there will be any impact unless he lies in his interviews,” one executive recently told David Aldridge of The Athletic. “Integrity is more relevant than criminal friends; one we can fix, the other, we can’t.”

After Henderson and Miller, the consensus among draft experts is that there’s drop-off before the next tier of prospects, but the Hornets will certainly do their homework on a group that includes Overtime Elite twins Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson, Villanova wing Cam Whitmore, Houston forward Jarace Walker, and Arkansas guard Anthony Black, among others.

Trading the pick is also an option for the Hornets, but Charlotte isn’t believed to leaning toward an aggressive win-now approach this offseason in the same way that the two teams drafting behind them (Portland at No. 3 and Houston at No. 4) are. I can imagine scenarios in which the Hornets trade down from No. 2 to No. 3, but it’s hard to envision them moving out of the top three entirely.

We want to know what you think. If we assume the Hornets keep their pick at No. 2 and Wembanyama is off the board, which player should they draft? Do you think there’s a different between the player they should draft and the one they will select? Would you seriously consider anyone besides Henderson and Miller? Should Charlotte seriously consider trading the pick?

Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to weigh in!

Draft Notes: Risers, Lively, Girard, Pack, Post

May 20th, 2023 at 3:32pm CST by Rory Maher

Marquette wing Olivier-Maxence Prosper, who withdrew from Thursday’s scrimmage after a strong performance Wednesday, may have been the biggest winner of the NBA draft combine, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic.

Not only did Prosper score a game-high 21 points (plus seven rebounds) in 22 minutes in Wednesday’s scrimmage, he was also measured at nearly 6’7″ without shoes along with a 7’1″ wingspan. The 20-year-old recorded the second-best standing vertical leap (35 inches) at the event.

As Hollinger writes, there are still question marks about his Prosper’s game (limited feel, low rate of steals plus blocks), but his effort at the combine may have turned him into a first-round pick. He’s currently No. 32 on ESPN’s big board.

Belmont guard Ben Sheppard (No. 36 on ESPN) and Serbian big man Tristan Vukcevic (No. 37) are among the other players who helped themselves at the combine, Hollinger adds. Keep an eye on the Hornets (Nos. 34, 39 and 41) and the Thunder (Nos. 37 and 50) as teams with multiple picks who might be interested in drafting-and-stashing Vukcevic, per Hollinger.

Here are a few more draft-related notes:

Dereck Lively II was the nation’s top high school recruit entering his freshman year at Duke, but saw his draft stock fall after an underwhelming season. Currently No. 25 on ESPN’s board and considered a late first-round pick, Lively plans to surprise people at the NBA level, Adam Zagoria writes for The News & Observer. “I believe my game translates because I can guard one through five, I can run the floor, I can space the floor out,” Lively said at the combine. “I wasn’t shooting at Duke but … just because you don’t think I can shoot, I can shoot the ball. I think everybody is going to be surprised by that this coming season and I just gotta make a name for myself.”
Joseph Girard, Nijel Pack, and Quinten Post all plan to withdraw from the draft and return to college for the 2023/24 season, according to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (All Twitter links). Girard is transferring from Syracuse to Clemson for his fifth and final year of eligibility, while Pack will be returning to Miami (FL) for his senior year and Post will return to Boston College for his fifth season. None of the three are listed on ESPN’s board, so they were considered unlikely to be drafted.
In case you missed it, we passed along some more draft decisions Friday.

Draft Notes: Miller, Podziemski, Vukcevic, Prosper, More

May 19th, 2023 at 3:06pm CST by Luke Adams

Based in part on the Hornets‘ roster needs, Jonathan Givony of ESPN believes Alabama wing Brandon Miller is slightly more likely than G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson to be the pick at No. 2, telling ESPN’s Zach Lowe on The Lowe Post podcast that he’d put the odds of Charlotte drafting Miller at 60%. However, according to Givony, Miller isn’t necessarily acing the pre-draft process so far.

“Every team in the NBA is looking for this type of player,” Givony said (hat tip to RealGM). “Six-nine, big guard, can handle the ball. Pass out of pick and roll. Make shots off the dribble. Defend multiple positions. Rebound. That’s what people are looking for. At the same time, he is not in great shape right now, so I don’t know how great his workout’s going to be. His interviews have not been great, I’ve been told — both publicly and privately with NBA teams.”

As David Aldridge of The Athletic writes, teams meeting with Miller will have questions about his connection to the death of Jamea Jonae Harris in Tuscaloosa. Miller brought former Alabama teammate Darius Miles the gun that was used in the killing, though he has insisted that he didn’t know the gun was in the car. The 20-year-old wasn’t charged with a crime and executives who spoke to Aldridge don’t think it will materially affect Miller’s draft stock.

“I don’t believe there will be any impact unless he lies in his interviews,” one exec said. “Integrity is more relevant than criminal friends; one we can fix, the other, we can’t.”

Here are more notes on the NBA draft:

Santa Clara sophomore guard Brandin Podziemski has opted to keep his name in the 2023 NBA draft, formally announcing his decision on Twitter. Podziemski is the No. 31 prospect on ESPN’s big board and has reportedly had a strong showing at the combine, per Givony (Twitter link), so he’s a legitimate first-round candidate.
After performing well in Wednesday’s scrimmages at the draft combine, Serbian big man Tristan Vukcevic and Marquette wing Olivier-Maxence Prosper withdrew from Thursday’s scrimmages, tweets Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com. Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca takes a more in-depth look at Prosper, who had 21 points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes during Wednesday’s scrimmage.
In addition to working out for Atlanta, Princeton forward Tosan Evbuomwan had workouts with the Spurs, Pistons, and Celtics prior to the draft combine, tweets Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. Evbuomwan was initially only invited to the G League Elite Camp, but earned a spot at the combine after making a strong impression last weekend.
John Hollinger of The Athletic considers which lottery picks might be in play on the trade market, starting with the Trail Blazers‘ and Rockets‘ selections at Nos. 3 and 4.

Draft Notes: Henderson, Miller, Combine, Mock Drafts

May 17th, 2023 at 8:41pm CST by Arthur Hill

Victor Wembanyama is considered a lock to be taken with the No. 1 pick, but Scoot Henderson doesn’t want to give up without a fight, writes Alex Schiffer of The Athletic. Speaking to reporters Wednesday at the NBA Draft Combine, Henderson said he believes he’s just as valuable as the French big man and he’s willing to meet with the Spurs to make his case.

“I think I have the ability to go No. 1,” he said. “I believe in myself as any competitor should.”

Henderson added that he hasn’t met with any teams at the combine yet, but he expects to hold several meetings and workouts over the next few weeks. Even if San Antonio doesn’t take him up on his offer, the Hornets and Trail Blazers, who hold picks No. 2 and 3, should be very interested. Those teams already have established lead guards in LaMelo Ball and Damian Lillard, but Henderson believes he could be successful in either situation.

“I don’t have to be ball dominant,” he added. “When my time comes, I’ll kill.”

There’s more draft news to pass along:

Brandon Miller, who’s projected as a top-three pick, is willing to hold meetings with teams outside of that range, tweets K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Miller has already met with the Bulls, who lost their first-round pick to Orlando when they failed to move up in Tuesday’s lottery.
Five-on-five scrimmages are among the highlights of the combine, but the highest-rated players typically choose not to participate. Thirty-seven prospects are skipping this year’s scrimmages, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN. That list includes Leonard Miller of G League Ignite, who was a last-minute decision, according to Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Twitter link).
Tuesday’s lottery resulted in a slew of new mock drafts from ESPN, The Ringer, The Athletic and Bleacher Report. Outside of Wembanyama at No. 1, there’s a lot of disagreement among the mocks, which reflects the uncertainty over many of the top prospects.
John Hollinger of The Athletic offers his ranking of the top 20 players in this year’s draft class, along with a pair of sleepers from Creighton and Santa Clara.
Jordan Walsh of Arkansas appears to be leaning toward keeping his name in the draft after a strong first day at the combine, according to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Walsh has already worked out for the Nets and Celtics and is currently considered to be an early second-round pick.
Tyrece Radford will withdraw from the draft and return for his final year of eligibility at Texas A&M, according to The Dallas Morning News. Rob Perry will also leave the draft and return to Murray State next season, tweets Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Wizards, Magic, Haslem

May 17th, 2023 at 11:23am CST by Luke Adams

G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson has long been considered the top prospect besides Victor Wembanyama in the 2023 draft class, but an inconsistent 2022/23 season and the emergence of Alabama wing Brandon Miller have loosened his hold on that No. 2 spot. The Hornets, who won the second overall pick in Tuesday’s lottery, already have a long-term cornerstone at point guard (LaMelo Ball), further complicating the team’s decision.

Although Hornets president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak didn’t mention either Henderson or Miller by name after the lottery, he strongly hinted that the team will consider both players. As Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer writes, Kupchak didn’t rule out the possibility of adding another ball-handling guard to the roster while also indicating that fit will be a consideration.

“We are getting a little bit more advanced in putting this team together. I think three years ago or even two, three years ago I would have said that without question that we are going to take the best available player, and that’s been our position the last three or four years when we are trying to accumulate talent,” Kupchak said. “And I don’t think we are where we need to be from a talent level, but we’ve got a lot more talent now than we did two or three years ago. So, I think we can be a little bit picky and take into consideration not only the overall talent, but the position.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

As Josh Robbins of The Athletic writes, head coach Wes Unseld Jr. admitted that it was a “disappointing” lottery night for the Wizards, who didn’t move down but had a great chance to land the No. 1 pick after the first three balls were drawn. Unseld remains confident that the team will be able to find a talented player at No. 8. “I can’t really talk in-depth about individuals, but I think there is some talent (in this draft),” Unseld said. “There’s some positional size. There’s some versatility, some wing depth. So, there certainly is going to be a good player there.”
Speaking after Tuesday’s lottery, Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman didn’t sound like someone who will be looking to trade one or both of the team’s lottery picks. Weltman, whose Magic control the No. 6 and No. 11 picks this June, said the team’s goal has long been to “build through the draft” and that he’s looking forward to meeting with several of this year’s top prospects (Twitter video link via Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel).
Heat big man Udonis Haslem, who will retire at season’s end, said this week that he would’ve found a way to be happy about how his career ended even if the team hadn’t made it this far in the playoffs, but he’s pleased to be going out on a positive note, according to Anthony Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. “I just didn’t want to underachieve,” Haslem said. “It wasn’t really about how we go out. It’s really about underachieving and not reaching our maximum potential. That’s what I would hate to do any year is underachieve.”

Spurs Win 2023 NBA Draft Lottery; Hornets, Blazers, Rockets In Top Four

May 16th, 2023 at 7:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have won the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes.

San Antonio claimed the No. 1 overall pick in Tuesday night’s draft lottery, putting the club in position to select Wembanyama, a 7’5″ French phenom who is widely considered the top NBA prospect since LeBron James.

The top 14 slots for the 2023 draft have officially been set. The lottery order is as follows:

San Antonio Spurs
Charlotte Hornets
Portland Trail Blazers
Houston Rockets
Detroit Pistons
Orlando Magic
Indiana Pacers
Washington Wizards
Utah Jazz
Dallas Mavericks
Orlando Magic (from Bulls)
Oklahoma City Thunder
Toronto Raptors
New Orleans Pelicans

It’s the third time in franchise history that the Spurs have won a draft lottery and earned the right to add a generational big man to their roster. San Antonio drafted David Robinson with the No. 1 overall pick in 1987 and Tim Duncan with the top pick in 1997.

The Spurs entered the night third in the lottery standings, but had a 14.0% chance at the No. 1 pick, the same odds as Detroit and Houston, the top two teams in the lottery standings.

The Pistons are the biggest loser of the night, slipping all the way out of the top four after finishing the season with the NBA’s worst record at 17-65. It also wasn’t an ideal outcome for the Rockets, who slipped from second to fourth in a draft widely considered to have a consensus top three prospects.

The Hornets, who had a 12.5% chance at the No. 1 pick and a 48.1% chance to end up in the top four, move up two spots to No. 2 and will likely decide between G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and Alabama wing Brandon Miller, who are viewed as the next-best prospects behind Wembanyama.

Henderson was once considered a lock for the No. 2 spot, but had an up-and-down year in the G League while Miller had a big freshman season for the Crimson Tide.

At No. 3, the Trail Blazers also moved up two spots and are the night’s other big winner — they’ll be in position to draft either Henderson or Miller, whichever one the Hornets pass on. Of course, Portland badly wants to build a roster around Damian Lillard that’s capable of contending sooner rather than later, so it’s possible the team will listen to offers for its lottery pick, but the price would presumably be extremely high.

Outside of the top five, the remaining lottery picks remain unchanged from the pre-lottery order. That means the Mavericks will keep their first-round pick, which would have been sent to the Knicks if it had slipped out of the top 10. Dallas will instead owe New York its 2024 first-rounder with top-10 protection.

The Bulls, meanwhile, would have hung onto their lottery pick if it had moved into the top four, but it will be sent to the Magic since it fell outside of its protected range. That pick was the last asset that Chicago owed to Orlando as part of the 2021 Nikola Vucevic trade.

Tuesday’s lottery results also shook up the order of the second round. Because San Antonio will be picking ahead of Houston in the first round, the Rockets’ second-round pick has moved up from No. 33 to No. 32, which means it will be sent to the Pacers instead of the Celtics.

That’s great news for the Pacers, who move up 18 spots from No. 50 as a result of that lottery outcome and a convoluted set of trade criteria involving multiple second-rounders. Rather than getting Houston’s pick, Boston will receive Portland’s second-rounder at No. 35, while the Thunder – who had been in position to get No. 35, will instead pick at No. 50.

Boone Expects Hornets To Re-Sign Dennis Smith Jr.

May 16th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Within a mailbag for The Charlotte Observer, Roderick Boone says he expects the Hornets to re-sign Dennis Smith Jr. in free agency this offseason, referring to the union between Charlotte and the veteran guard as a “perfect marriage.”

Suns Considered Likely To Shop Deandre Ayton, Chris Paul

May 12th, 2023 at 10:26am CST by Luke Adams

Center Deandre Ayton (ribs) and point guard Chris Paul (groin) were inactive for the final game of Phoenix’s season on Thursday night, and it’s possible they’ve played in a Suns uniform for the last time, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com.

According to MacMahon, who cites league sources, the Suns are expected to “aggressively” explore Ayton’s trade market this offseason. Sources tell ESPN that the former No. 1 overall pick would be excited by the opportunity to get a fresh start with another team.

Ayton reached restricted free agency last summer after he logged a playoff-low 17 minutes and had a sideline confrontation with head coach Monty Williams during the Suns’ final game of the postseason, a 33-point home loss to Dallas. The big man signed a four-year, maximum-salary offer sheet with the Pacers, and was said to be keen on the idea of teaming up with Tyrese Haliburton in Indiana, but the Suns quickly matched that offer in order to retain him.

Sources tell MacMahon that Williams and some Suns players have been frustrated at times with “what they perceive to be inconsistent effort and aggression” from Ayton. Sean Deveney of Heavy.com has also heard that the center will likely be on the trade block this offseason.

“It’s almost certain they will look into trading him,” one general manager told Deveney. “I think they feel like they can do all right with a mishmash of decent centers and changing their focus on getting better talent around those two star guys. That’s been true for the past couple of years, really. Deandre has butted heads with Monty. But he can be a great player, still, it just needs to be somewhere else.”

Executives who spoke to Heavy.com speculated that the Bulls, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, and Hornets could be potential Ayton suitors.

The belief is that the Suns would be targeting ball-handlers, shooters, and/or three-and-D type players in any Ayton deal, rather than another big-money center, Deveney adds. MacMahon conveys a similar sentiment, writing that Phoenix would like to lessen the burden on Kevin Durant and Devin Booker by adding role players who complement them rather than a third star.

According to MacMahon, there’s also an expectation that Paul will be shopped before the Suns have to make a decision on his contract for 2023/24. Currently, only $15.8MM of the veteran’s $30.8MM salary is guaranteed.

In addition to mentioning this possibility in his ESPN.com story, MacMahon stated in stronger terms on the Hoop Collective podcast with Brian Windhorst that he expects Paul’s name to pop up in trade rumors.

“I certainly would anticipate they aggressively shop Chris Paul before that June 28 (salary guarantee) deadline,” MacMahon said. “I think it’s pretty likely that Chris Paul is elsewhere next year.”

As for a possible head coaching change or front office shakeup in Phoenix, there’s no solid reporting yet suggesting either will happen, but sources with other teams have speculated about the idea, MacMahon writes, noting that one scout told him when the Suns were down by 30 points at halftime on Thursday, “Some heads are going to roll for this one.”

Williams and GM James Jones have strong résumés and have helped rebuild the culture in Phoenix following several years in the lottery, but the team has now had two embarrassing playoff exits in a row and has a new owner (Mat Ishbia) who may be looking to put his stamp on the franchise.