Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Scotto’s Latest: Wizards, Kuzma, Hawks, Bridges, Brogdon, DeRozan, More

May 13th, 2024 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards already hold a pair of picks in the first round of this year’s draft at No. 2 and No. 26, but there’s an expectation that they’ll try to acquire another 2024 first-rounder, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

As Scotto explains, the Wizards’ current front office – led by president Michael Winger and general manager Will Dawkins – is focused on building through the draft and developing young talent. The group made its first lottery pick last year when it used the No. 7 selection to nab Bilal Coulibaly, who was one of the NBA’s youngest players this past season. It sounds like Washington is in no hurry to accelerate its rebuild and won’t be opposed to taking fliers on more young, raw prospects, with Scotto indicating that the club also has its eye on the 2025 draft class.

Within his discussion of the Wizards’ next steps, Scotto adds that forward Kyle Kuzma is expected to generate interest on the trade market again this summer after being included in some discussions leading up to the February deadline. Prior to the trade deadline, Washington reportedly brought a Mavericks offer to Kuzma and asked him if he wanted to be moved — he opted to remain in D.C.

Here’s more from Scotto:

Echoing previous reports, Scotto says there’s a “widespread belief” from rival executives that the Hawks will break up their starting backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray this offseason by trading one of the two guards. Those execs also believe that Atlanta will be more open than ever to moving Young, though Scotto’s sources say the Spurs didn’t have “substantive” discussions about the three-time All-Star earlier this year and are skeptical that will change this summer.
In addition to the Hornets, the teams expected to have interested in free agent forward Miles Bridges this summer include the Pistons and Jazz, league sources tell Scotto.
Rival executives are keeping an eye on Trail Blazers guard Malcolm Brogdon as a potential offseason trade candidates, Scotto says. Brogdon will be on a $22.5MM expiring contract and there’s an expectation that Portland will be looking to shed some salary.
There’s a belief around the NBA that DeMar DeRozan will ultimately re-sign with the Bulls rather than changing teams as a free agent, according to Scotto, who notes that the veteran forward is comfortable in his role in Chicago and the Bulls are seemingly willing to pay him.
Scotto refers to G League Ignite forward Matas Buzelis as a “notable” candidate for the Pistons with the No. 5 overall pick, pointing out that Buzelis is represented by agent Michael Tellem, the son of Pistons vice chairman Arn Tellem.

Rick Schnall Discusses Lottery Experience; Longstaff Hired As Assistant Coach

May 13th, 2024 at 12:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

There wasn’t any lottery luck for the Hornets, who had the third-best odds for the top pick but dropped to No. 6 when three teams leapfrogged them, notes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Even though he didn’t get the result he wanted, co-owner Rick Schnall enjoyed his first look inside the lottery room. “It happens really fast and they run it in an incredibly efficient way,” he said. “And your disappointment comes really quickly. But it was interesting and it was good to see who was in the room, watch how the NBA runs it and understand — it might be my last time in there.” Schnall expressed confidence that Charlotte can find a productive player at No. 6 and called the lottery “just another step” in the process of building a competitive team.
Assistant coach Josh Longstaff will leave the Bulls to become part of Charles Lee‘s staff with the Hornets, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. He joins former Jazz assistant Lamar Skeeter, who was hired last week.

Lottery Luck Eludes Them Again

May 12th, 2024 at 8:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets haven’t had much lottery luck over the years and this one was no different. With Brandon Miller representing the Hornets at the lottery, they dropped from the No. 3 pick to No. 6. “In this process, I don’t think anything is a surprise, just because you never know what can go on here,” Miller told Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer. “I think the main thing here is to always be focused, prepared just for anything because it can go the wrong way. It can go the bad way.”

Hawks Win 2024 NBA Draft Lottery; Wizards, Rockets, Spurs In Top 4

May 12th, 2024 at 2:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have won the 2024 NBA draft lottery, jumping all the way up from No. 10 in the pre-lottery order to No. 1.

Atlanta had just a 3% chance of claiming this year’s top pick. Those are the longest odds for any team that has won the lottery since the NBA revamped the format prior to the 2019 draft.

The full lottery order for the 2024 draft is as follows:

Atlanta Hawks
Washington Wizards
Houston Rockets (from Nets)
San Antonio Spurs
Detroit Pistons
Charlotte Hornets
Portland Trail Blazers
San Antonio Spurs (from Raptors)
Memphis Grizzlies
Utah Jazz
Chicago Bulls
Oklahoma City Thunder (from Rockets)
Sacramento Kings
Portland Trail Blazers (from Warriors)

There’s no consensus No. 1 pick in 2024 like there was with Victor Wembanyama a year ago, so the Hawks will have plenty of options to consider in the coming weeks.

French big man Alexandre Sarr, French forward Zaccharie Risacher, UConn center Donovan Clingan, G League Ignite wing Ron Holland, Ignite forward Matas Buzelis, Serbian point guard Nikola Topic, and Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham are among the prospects expected to be in the mix for the top few picks.

Some of those players look like better fits than others on the current Atlanta roster, but there has been an expectation that the Hawks will make some significant changes this summer, with Trae Young and Dejounte Murray viewed as possible trade candidates. Atlanta’s front office will have to take those potential moves into account as it weighs what to do with the No. 1 pick.

Washington, Houston, and San Antonio are among the other big winners of draft lottery day. The Wizards entered the day ranked second in the pre-lottery order and no team had better odds at the top pick, but they also had just a 27.4% chance to remain in the top two, so they can’t complain about the outcome. It will be the second lottery pick for the current front office, which will get the opportunity to add another building block to last year’s No. 7 overall selection Bilal Coulibaly.

The Rockets‘ own pick at No. 12 will be sent to the Thunder as a result of 2019’s Russell Westbrook trade, but Houston will pick third overall thanks to one of the unprotected Nets first-rounders that was included in the 2021 James Harden blockbuster. Prior to the lottery, that pick had just the ninth-best odds to move into the top three (14.5%).

A report this week stated that the Rockets are interested in trading their lottery selection for future draft assets after having made nine first-round picks in the past three years. Assuming Houston’s stance hasn’t changed following the lottery results, the fact that the pick is now No. 3 instead of No. 9 should significantly improve its value on the trade market.

The Spurs, meanwhile, had an eventful lottery day, landing a pair of picks in the top eight as they look to build a contending team around Wembanyama. Their own pick moved up one spot, from No. 5 in the pre-lottery order to No. 4, and they also secured a second pick as a result of Toronto dropping from No. 6 to No. 8.

The Raptors traded their top-six protected 2024 first-round pick to San Antonio in a package for Jakob Poeltl last year and would have retained it if no teams had leapfrogged them into the top four. Because Atlanta and Houston both moved up, that No. 8 pick will be controlled by the Spurs — the Raptors’ obligation to San Antonio is complete and they’ll control all their own first-rounders beginning in 2025.

It’s another disappointing lottery day for the Pistons, who – for a second consecutive year – finished with the NBA’s worst record and ended up with the No. 5 overall pick. For what it’s worth, Detroit only had about a 50/50 chance (52.1%) in each case to land in the top four, due to the flatter nature of the odds under the NBA’s current format. Still, losing that coin flip in back-to-back years is a discouraging outcome for a Pistons team whose rebuild hasn’t progressed at the rate the organization hoped.

While no team dropped as far as the Pistons (four spots), the Hornets (No. 3 to No. 6), Trail Blazers (No. 4 to No. 7), Grizzlies (No. 7 to No. 9), and Jazz (No. 8 to No. 10) also moved back multiple spots as a result of the lottery.

If Utah had fallen one more spot, the Jazz would’ve owed their top-10 protected first-round pick to the Thunder, but that obligation will roll over to 2025 instead — the pick will retain its top-10 protection next year.

The Wizards, Pistons, Hornets, Trail Blazers, and Kings also had traded picks fall into their protected range and will owe their 2025 first-rounders to rival teams. The Knicks will receive Washington’s 2025 pick if it’s not in the top 10 and Detroit’s pick if it’s not in the top 13. The Spurs will control Charlotte’s lottery-protected 2025 pick; the Bulls would get Portland’s 2025 pick if it’s outside the lottery; and the Hawks will acquire the Kings’ 2025 first-rounder if it doesn’t end up in the top 12.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the Warriors would have retained their 2024 first-rounder in the unlikely event that it had moved into the top four. Because it stayed at No. 14, it was sent to Portland and Golden State has no further obligation to the Blazers.

Draft Notes: Lottery, Williams, Sarr, Holland, Sheppard, Shannon

May 10th, 2024 at 8:31pm CST by Luke Adams

This year’s draft lottery isn’t nearly as highly anticipated as the 2023 event that determined which team would get the opportunity to select generational prospect Victor Wembanyama. Still, each team involved in the 2024 lottery would love to come away Sunday with the No. 1 overall pick, as Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo write for ESPN.com (Insider link).

In a team-by-team look at the lottery teams, Givony and Woo explore what’s at stake for each franchise on Sunday and which prospects they’ll be eyeing if they claim a top spot in the draft or if they end up where they are.

Although ESPN’s draft experts have French forward Zaccharie Risacher ranked as the No. 1 prospect in this year’s class, they suggest that both the Wizards and Hornets may prefer another Frenchman (Alexandre Sarr) if they land the top pick, while the Spurs could be an ideal fit for guard Rob Dillingham, whose perimeter shooting and ball-handling would complement Wembanyama’s skill set.

UConn center Donovan Clingan, meanwhile, could be a perfect match for the Grizzlies, who traded away big men Steven Adams and Xavier Tillman earlier this year. Woo also points out that – if he’s still on the board at No. 12 – Colorado prospect Cody Williams would have an opportunity to potentially team up with older brother Jalen Williams on the Thunder.

Here are a few more draft-related items:

Cody Williams isn’t the only lottery prospect with an older brother under contract in Oklahoma City — Alexandre Sarr’s older brother Olivier Sarr finished the season on a two-way contract with the Thunder. Marc J. Spears of Andscape spoke to Jalen Williams and Olivier Sarr about the prospect of their younger brothers entering the NBA as high draft picks later this year.
Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer and Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report have updated their big boards for the 2024 draft, with several notable differences between them. The top two prospects on Wasserman’s board – Ron Holland and Reed Sheppard – don’t crack O’Connor’s top five. O’Connor also published a new mock draft, which has UConn’s Clingan coming off the board at No. 2.
Wasserman (via Twitter) shares the rosters for the four teams that will scrimmage at the G League Elite Camp this weekend. The standouts from the event will be invited to participate in the NBA’s draft combine next week.
A June 10 trial date set for former Illinois guard Terrence Shannon, the No. 33 prospect on ESPN’s top-100 list, who faces felony charges of first-degree rape and sexual aggravated battery, reports Myron Medcalf of ESPN. Shannon’s attorneys say the trial is expected to conclude before the NBA draft, which takes place on June 26 and 27. He has pleaded not guilty.

Hornets Notes: Skeeter, Lee, Staff, Tasks

May 10th, 2024 at 3:56pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets plan to hire Jazz assistant coach Lamar Skeeter to be their top assistant under new head coach Charles Lee, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (via Twitter).

Skeeter has been with Utah for the past 10 years, starting out as a player development/video analyst before being promoted multiple times. He interviewed for the Jazz’s head coaching job — which eventually went to Will Hardy — a couple years ago, and reportedly received consideration from Charlotte this spring as well.

Here’s more on the Hornets:

In an interview with the team’s website (YouTube link), Lee said he’s looking forward to working with Charlotte’s “talent-rich roster,” particularly the “young core” of Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball. “It does excite me and you watch these young guys right now and they are still trying to find their way of what they are in the NBA,” Lee said. “We just have to come with the right approach, that every day we have an opportunity to get better. And so whatever that consists of for every player, we have to attack it and be obsessed with daily improvement. And I think from what I’ve seen of those guys, that have that DNA. And that’s why the Hornets decided to draft Brandon, decided to draft LaMelo. They are the types of guys you want to continue to build around.”
Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer lists three tasks Lee will be faced with when he begins working with the Hornets full-time — the 39-year-old is currently finishing out the season with Boston. Lee’s first order of business will be filling out his staff, which has already begun with the reported hiring of Skeeter. While it isn’t certain, there’s a strong possibility the majority of the coaching staff could be seeking employment elsewhere in the coming weeks, according to Boone, who reports that changes to the performance staff could also be in the works.
Was Lee the right choice for the job? Scott Fowler of The Charlotte Observer initially advocated for the Hornets to hire South Carolina women’s coach Dawn Staley. Obviously they didn’t hire Staley, but Lee seems like a solid choice due to his track record of success as an assistant, Fowler opines.

And-Ones: Towns, Media Rights, California Classic, Howard

May 9th, 2024 at 3:21pm CST by Rory Maher

Timberwolves forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns has been named the NBA’s Social Justice Champion for the 2023/24 season, the league announced in a press release.

The four-time All-Star is a voting rights advocate and supported Minnesota’s Restore the Vote bill last year, which “restores the right to vote to thousands of formerly incarcerated individuals.” Towns also advocates for changes to the criminal justice and education systems in the U.S.

Heat center Bam Adebayo, Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, Thunder wing Lindy Waters and Clippers guard Russell Westbrook were the other finalists.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

On an earnings call, TNT (Warner Bros. Discovery) CEO David Zaslav was cautiously optimistic about retaining media rights to NBA games, per Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. “We’ve had a lot of time to prepare for this negotiation, and we have strategies in place for the various potential outcomes,” Zaslav said. “However, now is not the time to discuss any of this since we are in active negotiations with the league. And under our current deal with the NBA, we have matching rights that allow us to match third-party offers before the NBA enters into an agreement with them.”
Zaslav’s comments came on the heels of various reports saying NBC has submitted a $2.5 billion bid to be the league’s third media rights partner, joining ESPN/ABC (Disney) and Amazon, which already have framework deals in place. According to Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal, NBC is still viewed as the frontrunner, ahead of TNT.
The 2024 California Classic will be co-hosted by the Kings and Warriors, as Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee relays. California’s Summer League – a prelude to Las Vegas Summer League – will take place from July 6-10 and will feature 12 total games. The Kings, Hornets and Spurs will play in Sacramento and the Warriors, Lakers and Heat will play in San Francisco. Sacramento will head to the Chase Center to face Golden State on July 10 to wrap up the event, Anderson writes.
Former NBA guard Markus Howard was granted permission to play for Puerto Rico ahead of the country’s Olympic qualifying tournament this summer, the federation announced in a press release. The former Marquette star led the EuroLeague in scoring while playing for Spain’s Baskonia this season, BasketNews notes. “We are very happy to welcome Markus to our national team,” said Carlos Arroyo, general manager of Puerto Rico’s national team. “Markus has become one of the best players in Europe, and for us, it is a luxury to have him. His offensive level will raise the expectations of our team.”

Hornets Hire Charles Lee As Head Coach

May 9th, 2024 at 7:34am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets have formally named Steve Clifford‘s successor, announcing in a press release that they’ve hired former Celtics assistant Charles Lee as their new head coach.

Lee will finish his playoff run in Boston before officially joining the Hornets, according to the announcement. Sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) that Lee will sign a four-year contract with Charlotte.

“We are excited to welcome Charles Lee as the head coach of Charlotte Hornets,” Hornets head of basketball operations Jeff Peterson said in a statement. “His high character and his ability to connect with players while also instilling a culture of accountability will serve us well as we construct a competitive team built for long-term success.

“Charles possesses a championship pedigree with a wide range of basketball knowledge and NBA experience, has a tremendous work ethic and is a great communicator. He shares our vision for this organization, and I look forward to partnering with him in building something special here in the Carolinas.”

Long viewed as the frontrunner in the Hornets’ head coaching search, Lee spent several years playing professionally in international leagues from 2006-10 before transitioning into coaching.

He was an assistant at Bucknell from 2012-14, then worked under Mike Budenholzer in Atlanta from 2014-18 and in Milwaukee from 2018-23, winning a title with the Bucks in 2021. Following Budenholzer’s ouster last year, Lee was hired by the Celtics as Joe Mazzulla‘s lead assistant for the 2023/24 season.

Lee has been one of the NBA’s most popular head coaching candidates in recent years. He either interviewed with or received consideration from the Celtics, Pelicans, Magic, and Wizards in 2021; the Hornets, Lakers, Kings, and Jazz in 2022; and the Pistons, Bucks, Suns, and Raptors in 2023.

Lee has a preexisting relationship with Peterson, who worked in Atlanta’s front office when Lee was a Hawks assistant. Hornets co-owner Rick Schnall was a minority stakeholder in the Hawks at that time.

Charlotte had been in the market for a new head coach because Clifford announced in early April that he would be stepping down from his position. He’s reportedly expected to transition into a front office role following his second stint coaching the Hornets.

Lee will take over a Hornets team that is still very much in retooling mode, though there are some intriguing foundational pieces in place, led by forward Brandon Miller and guard LaMelo Ball. Miller finished third in Rookie of the Year voting this spring; Ball has battled ankle issues in recent years, but is a former Rookie of the Year who has an All-Star berth under his belt and is still just 22 years old.

The Hornets are the second team to complete a head coaching search since the regular season ended, joining the Nets (Jordi Fernandez). The Wizards and Lakers continue to seek new coaches.

Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama Named Rookie Of Year

May 6th, 2024 at 6:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama has unanimously been named the league’s Rookie of the Year, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).

The top pick of the 2023 draft lived up to his billing, averaging 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, a league-high 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals in 71 games. Wembanyama received all 99 first-place votes for 495 points (Twitter link).

Wembanyama is the first player to have at least 1,500 points, 700 rebounds, 250 assists, 250 blocks and 100 3-pointers made in a season. He is the second rookie to lead all NBA players in blocks per game in a season, joining Manute Bol (1985/86).

Chet Holmgren, who boosted the Thunder to the top seed in the Western Conference, finished second in the voting with Hornets forward Brandon Miller winding up a distant third. Holmgren received all but one of the second-place votes with Miller getting the other. Miller was picked third on 83 ballots.

The Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. finished fourth in the voting and the Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski wound up fifth.

Holmgren, the No. 2 pick of the 2022 draft who missed last season due to a foot injury, appeared in all 82 games. He averaged 16.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.3 blocks during the regular season.

Miller, the No. 2 pick in last year’s draft, averaged 17.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 74 games, including 68 starts.

Eastern Notes: Pistons, Horst, Butler, Sixers, Hornets, Nets, More

May 6th, 2024 at 10:55am CST by Luke Adams

Now that the Bucks‘ season has come to an end, the Pistons are expected to formally seek permission to interview Milwaukee general manager Jon Horst for their president of basketball operations job soon, Marc Stein reports in his latest story at Substack. According to Stein, it’s not yet known whether the Bucks will grant Detroit permission to meet with Horst, a Michigan native who began his NBA career in the Pistons’ basketball operations department.

Elsewhere in his Substack article, Stein says that Jimmy Butler‘s future has become an “increasingly hot topic” around the NBA following the Heat‘s first-round playoff exit. Multiple rival teams have wondered if the Sixers will make a run at trading for Butler this offseason in an effort to reunite the star swingman with good friend Joel Embiid, per Stein. The Embiid/Butler 76ers took the eventual-champion Raptors down to the wire in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2019, but were broken up less than two months later when Butler was signed-and-traded to Miami.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Several executives around the NBA thought the Hornets would have concluded their head coaching search by now, but the team is taking a “very methodical” approach to the process and there’s no specific timeline to make a hire, Rod Boone writes in a mailbag for The Charlotte Observer. Boone’s mailbag also explores Charlotte’s draft strategy and how to revitalize the team’s brand, among other topics.
How much of a difference could it make for the Nets to have a healthy Ben Simmons and Dariq Whitehead next season? Net Income of Nets Daily explores that subject, citing league insiders who say Brooklyn has no plans to waive Simmons this offseason.
With Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby set to square off in the second round of the playoffs as members of the Pacers and Knicks, respectively, the Raptors will “catch some sass” for trading away both players this season, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Given how well the two forwards have played alongside backcourt stars – Tyrese Haliburton in Indiana and Jalen Brunson in New York – Koreen wonders if things went wrong in Toronto because the club couldn’t find the right “dynamic” guard to allow Siakam and Anunoby to play their proper roles.
James L. Edwards III of The Athletic previews next week’s draft combine from a Pistons perspective, identifying the players the club will have its eye on in the top five and naming a few prospects who could make sense at No. 53. Edwards views Alexandre Sarr as the player likeliest to be atop Detroit’s board, with Stephon Castle, Cody Williams, Donovan Clingan, and Matas Buzelis in the next tier.