Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Coaching Changes May Be Coming In Detroit, Toronto, Houston

April 7th, 2023 at 12:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons, Raptors and Rockets are the main teams to watch for head coaching changes once the NBA season ends, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

Detroit’s Dwane Casey met with ownership to discuss his future after Wednesday’s game, and sources tell Fischer that some staff members are preparing for a change to take place. Fischer cites a source with knowledge of the situation who says Casey may be given the option of returning as head coach for the final year of his contract or moving into an advisory role with the front office.

Bucks assistant Charles Lee, who has interviewed for numerous head coaching positions in the past, is a top candidate if the Pistons’ job opens up, according to Fischer, who hears that Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin may be given consideration as well. Griffin previously worked under general manager Troy Weaver as an assistant coach in Oklahoma City.

Nick Nurse amplified questions about his status in Toronto last weekend when he said he plans to take some time after the season to evaluate his future with the organization. There were already rumors that the Raptors were considering a coaching move following a disappointing season that will result in a spot in the play-in tournament.

Former Celtics coach Ime Udoka is considered a leading candidate to replace Nurse if he either decides to move on or is dismissed by the team. Udoka was a finalist for the job before Nurse was hired in 2018, and he has a strong relationship with executive Masai Ujiri through the Basketball Without Borders program.

Nurse could wind up in Houston, where Stephen Silas appears likely to be replaced after three years of rebuilding, Fischer adds. Nurse was the Rockets’ G League coach from 2011-13, but he’s not the only potential candidate with ties to Houston or to James Harden, who will reportedly be an offseason target in free agency.

Fischer notes that Trail Blazers assistant Scott Brooks coached Harden in Oklahoma City, while Pistons assistant Rex Kalamian worked on Brooks’ staff with the Thunder. Fischer states that Kalamian has been mentioned by several NBA sources as a potential addition in Houston, possibly as an assistant.

Elsewhere, Fischer hears that league personnel are watching Steve Clifford’s future with the Hornets. The current leadership isn’t considering replacing Clifford, who’s still on the first season of his new contract, Fischer adds, but that could change if Michael Jordan sells enough of his interest in the team that there’s a new primary governor.

Hornets Convert Kobi Simmons’ Contract, Sign Xavier Sneed To Two-Way Deal

April 7th, 2023 at 9:42am CST by Arthur Hill

The two-way contract that Kobi Simmons signed with the Hornets last week has been converted to a standard deal, the team announced in a press release, adding that Xavier Sneed will fill the newly created two-way opening.

Simmons, a 25-year-old point guard, has appeared in three games so far with Charlotte, averaging 1.7 PPG in 5.7 minutes per night. It marked the first NBA action for the long-time G-Leaguer since he played one game for the Cavaliers during the 2018/19 season.

Simmons received a multi-year contract, according to the press release, but terms weren’t revealed so it’s uncertain whether he has any guaranteed money beyond this season. He has spent the past three years with Charlotte’s G League affiliate and is the club’s career leader in scoring.

Sneed averaged 5.0 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in three games with Charlotte on a 10-day contract that expired Thursday. The 25-year-old small forward also had brief stays with the Grizzlies and Jazz last season.

Final Check-In On Open NBA Roster Spots

April 2nd, 2023 at 9:57am CST by Luke Adams

With just one week left in the NBA’s regular season, there are still a number of teams around the league with open roster spots, and there’s little downside to filling those openings before the regular season ends.

For playoff teams, adding one more player would create a little extra depth in the event of postseason injuries or garbage-time minutes. For non-playoff teams, it makes sense to try to convince a young player to accept a multiyear deal that includes little or no guaranteed money beyond this season, since it gives those teams another option for next year’s roster.

Even clubs over the luxury tax line or right up against it shouldn’t have a problem paying one more player a prorated minimum salary for the last day or two of the season — the prorated minimum for a veteran on a rest-of-season deal is just $10,552 per day, which is a drop in the bucket for NBA franchises.

With all that in mind, it’s safe to assume that some – if not all – of the teams with open roster spots should fill them by next Sunday. Here are those teams:

Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets *
Charlotte Hornets *
Houston Rockets
Los Angeles Lakers
New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns ^
Utah Jazz #

The two teams marked with an asterisk (*) here technically have full 15-man rosters as of today, but one of their players is on a 10-day contract. That’s Moses Brown for the Nets and Xavier Sneed for the Hornets. Both of those contracts run through Thursday night before expiring, so Brooklyn and Charlotte will have the opportunity to sign a player to a rest-of-season or multiyear deal at that time.

The Suns (^) have a full 15-man standard roster but have an open two-way contract slot alongside Saben Lee. It’s possible Phoenix won’t bother signing someone to fill that opening, since two-way players aren’t eligible to play in the postseason and the Suns don’t have a G League affiliate (the NBAGL season is just about over anyway).

As for the Jazz (#), they currently have one open spot on their 15-man standard roster and will open up a second when Luka Samanic‘s 10-day contract expires on Thursday night. So Utah could technically bring in two new players before season’s end without waiving anyone.

The rest of the teams on this list – the Celtics, Rockets, Lakers, and Knicks – are carrying 14 players on standard contracts, leaving one spot available.

Boston and New York are postseason-bound and L.A. is in good position to join them, but that doesn’t necessarily mean each of those teams will sign a “win-now” veteran as a 15th man. They already have enough depth on their respective rosters that they may prefer to promote a player from the G League on a multiyear deal, assuming they decide to fill those openings at all. Boston and L.A. are taxpayers, so a signing would cost them a little more than just $10,552 per day.

Hornets Notes: Sneed, Maledon, Washington

April 1st, 2023 at 10:49am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets‘ signing of Xavier Sneed to a 10-day contract helped clear the way for Theo Maledon to have a career night on Tuesday, as Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer explains. Teams are limited to having their two-way players active for just 90 combined games (instead of 100) if they don’t have full 15-man rosters, so adding Sneed as a 15th man allowed the team to start Maledon. He responded with 19 points and nine assists in a road win over Oklahoma City.
Hornets forward P.J. Washington may have played his last game before he becomes a restricted free agent. Washington left Friday’s loss to Chicago due to a sprained right ankle, and Boone isn’t sure whether he’ll return for any of the four games left on Charlotte’s schedule.

Injury Notes: George, SGA, Markkanen, Rozier, Oubre

March 31st, 2023 at 11:14am CST by Luke Adams

Clippers star Paul George isn’t expected to play again during the regular season as he recovers from a right knee sprain, but he hasn’t been ruled for the postseason. Still, the Clippers recognize that they’ll likely need to win a few playoff games without George in order to have a chance to get him back in their lineup, Shams Charania of The Athletic said during an appearance this week on FanDuel TV (Twitter video link).

“The Clippers believe, I’m told, that they’re going to have to get out of at least the first round for a real window for Paul George to return,” Charania said. “So maybe second round, conference finals. You get out of the first round and you give yourself a chance to get Paul George back.”

At 41-36, the Clippers are currently the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference, so they may enter the first round without home court advantage. Winning a series on the road without their top scorer would be a tall order, but it may be L.A.’s only path to getting George back on the court this spring.

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (left ankle sprain) was originally listed as out for Friday’s game against Indiana (Twitter link via Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman), but has since been upgraded to questionable (Twitter link via Andrew Schlecht of The Athletic). Gilgeous-Alexander, whose team still has a hold on the 10th spot in the West at 38-39, has missed the last two games due to that sprained ankle.
Another Western Conference All-Star, Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, will also remain sidelined on Friday, tweets Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. It’s the fourth time in the last five games that Markkanen has been ruled out due to a left hand contusion. A loss vs. Boston tonight might put the Jazz’s play-in hopes on life support — they’re currently at No. 12 in the West, 1.5 games back of Oklahoma City.
Hornets guard Terry Rozier will miss a fourth straight game on Friday vs. Chicago due to left foot discomfort, per Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link). Charlotte has just four games left after tonight, so it’s unclear whether we’ll see Rozier again this season. Kelly Oubre (right shoulder sprain), who has also been out for the last three games, has been upgraded to questionable for Friday.

Hornets Sign Kobi Simmons To Two-Way Contract

March 30th, 2023 at 9:59am CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 30: The Hornets have officially signed Simmons to a two-way deal, the club confirmed today in a press release.

MARCH 29: The Hornets have agreed to sign guard Kobi Simmons to a two-way contract, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Simmons will be the second player from the Greensboro Swarm, Charlotte’s G League affiliate, to receive a promotion to the Hornets’ 17-man roster this week. The team also signed Xavier Sneed to a 10-day contract.

Simmons, who went undrafted out of Arizona in 2017, appeared in 33 NBA games for Memphis and Cleveland during his first two seasons, but has spent most of his professional career in the G League. He also played one season in Poland in 2021/22.

In 32 G League regular season games in ’22/23, Simmons has averaged 18.2 points, 4.0 assists, and 3.9 rebounds in 31.8 minutes per night, with a shooting line of .488/.383/.795. He was even better during the Showcase Cup in the fall, putting up 21.7 PPG, 5.7 APG, and 5.3 RPG on .491/.375/.837 shooting in 14 appearances (38.0 MPG).

If Simmons gets into a game for the Hornets during the last two weeks of this season, it will be his first NBA appearance since February 2, 2019.

Charlotte has had an open two-way slot since promoting Bryce McGowens to the standard roster a little over a month ago. Simmons and Theo Maledon will now occupy those two-way spots. The Hornets were one of three NBA teams with a two-way opening — the Pacers and Suns are the other two, as our tracker shows.

And-Ones: Silver, Jordan, MVP Race, Cousins

March 30th, 2023 at 8:57am CST by Luke Adams

In addition to addressing the state of the CBA negotiations between the NBA and NBPA during his press conference on Wednesday, commissioner Adam Silver spoke about several other topics, including rumors that he could replace Bob Iger as Disney’s CEO (“I have no intention of going anywhere,” Silver said) and his meeting earlier this month with Grizzlies guard Ja Morant.

As Tim Bontemps of ESPN relays, Silver also discussed the reports stating that Michael Jordan is in talks to sell a stake in the Hornets, explaining that Jordan expects to still be very much involved in the NBA even if he’s no longer the majority owner in Charlotte.

“One thing Michael has told me is that whether or not that transaction gets done, he will remain governor in the league, technically maybe the alternate governor instead of the governor, so he’ll still stay very involved,” Silver said. “He’d still continue to have an interest in the league.

“I recognize that over time, people’s interests move on to other areas. He’s not living in the market right now, etc. So, completely understandable. But the good news is, I think regardless of his ownership status, he will remain part and parcel of everything that this league continues to do. I have no doubt about that.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The 2023 MVP race is tighter than ever in the season’s home stretch, according to the third and final straw poll conducted by Tim Bontemps of ESPN. The 100 media members who submitted five-man ballots to Bontemps picked Sixers center Joel Embiid over Nuggets center Nikola Jokic by a grand total of two points (790 to 788). Jokic actually received more first-place votes (42) than Embiid (40), while Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was also very much in the mix, with the remaining 18 first-place votes and 612 total points.
Asked during an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio (Twitter audio link) if he has received feedback from NBA teams about why he’s not in the league, free agent center DeMarcus Cousins said he hasn’t gotten a real explanation. “I’ve asked many questions. I’ve reached out to former teams,” Cousins said. “I kind of get sugar-coated answers. I can never really get the raw, honest truth. I’ve struggled with that as well. I would love to get a real answer.”
In an Insider-only article for ESPN.com, Kevin Pelton considers the effect a minimum games-played requirement would have on All-NBA voting, noting that players who have earned All-NBA honors while playing fewer than 58 games have often been among the league’s biggest superstars.

Smith Making Defensive Impact

March 28th, 2023 at 11:16pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets surprisingly have the NBA’s top defense since the All-Star break, writes Nekias Duncan of BasketballNews.com, who takes a look at how Charlotte has made strides on the less glamorous end of the court. One player making a major impact is point guard Dennis Smith Jr., according to Duncan. Smith, who missed Tuesday’s win over the Thunder due to a sprained right big toe, is on an expiring minimum-salary contract and is set to his unrestricted free agency in the offseason.

Hornets Sign Xavier Sneed To 10-Day Contract

March 28th, 2023 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

12:02pm: The Hornets have officially signed Sneed to a 10-day contract, the team confirmed in a press release.

9:52am: The Hornets are calling up forward Xavier Sneed from the G League, according to Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer, who reports (via Twitter) that Sneed is signing a 10-day contract with the club.

Sneed, 25, has spent the 2022/23 season with the Greensboro Swarm, Charlotte’s NBAGL affiliate, and has appeared in a total of 44 games from the club across the Showcase Cup and regular season. In 32 regular season appearances (31.2 MPG), Sneed has averaged 12.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per night with a .393/.318/.738 shooting line.

A G League regular since going undrafted out of Kansas State in 2020, Sneed has also accumulated a little NBA experience. He played in two games for the Grizzlies while on a 10-day contract last season and then saw action in seven more contests for the Jazz on a two-way deal.

The Hornets have had an opening on their 15-man roster for months, so no corresponding move will be necessary to create an opening for Sneed. Charlotte still has an open two-way slot as well.

Sneed will earn $94,136 on his 10-day deal with the Hornets. He’ll provide depth for a banged-up Charlotte squad that is currently without LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, and Cody Martin (Gordon Hayward and Kelly Oubre are also on the injury report for Tuesday’s game).

James Bouknight Enters Hornets' Rotation

March 28th, 2023 at 11:26am CST by Luke Adams

Hornets guard James Bouknight hasn’t seen regular minutes for most of his first two NBA seasons, but he re-entered the rotation on Sunday and is expected to play more frequently in the season’s final two weeks, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. “I just think it’s an opportunity for him,” head coach Steve Clifford said. “He can now use this as a springboard into his summer. One of things that hurt his year this year was he didn’t have a summer last year. He was injured, so he wasn’t able to do anything. Regardless of how old guys are, most of their year is set up in the summer. Rarely do guys have bad summers and come back and have great years.”