Charlotte Hornets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Hornets Cut Leaky Black

August 1st, 2024 at 5:53pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Hornets have waived two-way player Leaky Black, the team announced via Twitter.

Just a few weeks ago, the young forward was expressing a desire to earn a spot on the club’s standard 15-man roster. Now, it looks like he may have to seek out his next NBA opportunity elsewhere.

Across 26 contests with Charlotte (three starts), the 6’9″ UNC alum averaged 2.7 points on a .481/.450/.667 shooting line, along with 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. In seven appearances for Charlotte’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, Black averaged 10.8 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 2.4 APG, and 1.7 SPG.

Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer notes that Black seemed to have shored up his offense during his Summer League games with the team this offseason, specifically showing off an updated jump shot.

The Hornets now have one open two-way slot. Third-year center Moussa Diabate and rookie point guard KJ Simpson are occupying the other two-way spots on the roster. The Hornets also still have one of their 15 standard roster spots available.

Hornets Sign Moussa Diabate To Two-Way Contract

July 31st, 2024 at 5:33pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 31: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

JULY 29: The Hornets and free agent big man Moussa Diabate have agreed to terms on a two-way contract, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Diabate, 22, was the 43rd overall pick of the 2022 draft out of Michigan. The 6’10” French center has spent his first two professional seasons on two-way contracts with the Clippers, appearing in 33 total NBA games during that time.

Diabate’s contributions at the NBA level have been modest — he has averaged just 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 7.8 minutes per game for Los Angeles. However, he has been a regular starter for the Ontario Clippers in the G League during those two seasons. In 2023/24, he averaged 15.5 PPG, 10.2 RPG, and 1.9 BPG in 19 Showcase Cup and regular season NBAGL games (30.0 MPG).

The Clippers opted not to tender Diabate a qualifying offer in June, so he became an unrestricted free agent on July 1, clearing the way for him to sign freely with any NBA team.

Diabate will fill the third two-way slot in Charlotte. The Hornets are currently carrying Leaky Black and 2024 second-round pick KJ Simpson on two-way deals.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Adebayo, Jovic, Gill, Wizards

July 29th, 2024 at 10:40pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Hornets have largely done well for themselves this offseason, retaining some players, drafting Tidjane Salaun , and adding Josh Green for cheap.

They still have one standard roster spot open and Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer predicts that spot will remain open until closer to the start of the season. It would make sense for the Hornets to wait for roster cuts if there’s no one on the market they wish to reward with a standard deal and see if they can claim a talented young player on waivers. Boone thought summer league standout Mouhamadou Gueye might compete for a two-way deal, but the Hornets are reportedly filling their final such deal with Moussa Diabate.

Boone’s mailbag also checks in on the rest of the team, including the health of center Mark Williams. Boone opines that adding a power forward/center would be a wise option if Williams isn’t ready to go for the start of the season, since Nick Richards is the only true backup there, while Taj Gibson could fill in in an emergency.

As for Green, Boone says he’s currently penciled in to play two-guard position, but coach Charles Lee doesn’t want to pigeonhole him into a specific role until he’s spent more time with the roster.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The Heat‘s Bam Adebayo is participating in his second Olympics after winning gold in Tokyo in 2021. He played 20 minutes off the bench and recorded four points, two rebounds and two assists on Sunday vs. Serbia, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald observes. While he didn’t score much, Adebayo held the task of guarding Nikola Jokic in the team’s first Olympic outing. Adebayo’s found success off the bench alongside Anthony Davis for Team USA.
The Heat had a second player in the Olympic opener, with Nikola Jovic suiting up for Serbia. The 21-year-old had five points and two rebounds in his first Olympic experience of his career, Chiang writes. He took a starting role for Miami and is expected to be a big part of their future moving forward. In his matchup against Team USA, his primary assignment was LeBron James on both ends.
The Wizards signed Anthony Gill to a two-year, minimum-salary ($4.78MM) contract, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. The deal is fully guaranteed for 2024/25 and is non-guaranteed for ’25/26. Gill has appeared in 179 games with the Wizards since 2020 but only averages 9.9 minutes for the only team he’s called home in the league. The Wizards like Gill, signing Virginia product to three standard deals so far.
Following the addition of Gill, it’s even more clear the Wizards aren’t done making moves this offseason. As Spotrac’s Keith Smith observes (Twitter link), the team has 17 players on standard contracts, with only Jared Butler and Eugene Omoruyi on non-guaranteed deals. While their decision-making could be as simple as waiving both players, they have a need at point guard, where Butler showed flashes last season and they value Omoruyi. Other players could be on the move as the offseason wears on.

Community Shootaround: Underrated Remaining Free Agents

July 28th, 2024 at 8:48pm CST by Tristan Tucker

For the most part, standard roster spots across the league have dried up with the bulk of the top free agents having decided their destinations earlier in July. And some of the teams that do have open roster spots seem to be maneuvering to bring back some of the bigger names remaining in free agency.

Take the Grizzlies for example, who salary dumped Ziaire Williams in a move that seems to be setting up a return for Luke Kennard, one of the top players still available. The Cavaliers have three open standard roster spots, but figure to fill one or more of them once Isaac Okoro‘s restricted free agency is resolved (whether they’re keeping flexibility for a sign-and-trade or simply plan to bring him back remains to be seen). The Knicks, likewise, are the most likely destination for Precious Achiuwa but could still execute a sign-and-trade.

The remaining players on our top-50 list are Okoro (No. 20), Kennard (No. 29), Achiuwa (No. 37), Markelle Fultz (No. 43), Cedi Osman (No. 46) and Gordon Hayward (No. 49). While teams seem to have at least some level of plans in place for the top few remaining free agents, there are several others who have found recent success in the NBA and could help teams, but who appear to have been overlooked to this point.

A pair of Nets guards in Lonnie Walker IV and Dennis Smith Jr. are among the free agents who haven’t found new homes. Both are still relatively young and have shown promise in their careers. Smith, in particular, established himself as one of the better backcourt defenders in the league in his season with Charlotte in 2022/23, but he didn’t catch on for the long term. Walker has shown an ability to score in bunches and averaged 9.7 points in just 17.4 minutes last season (20.1 points per 36).

Likewise, Jordan Nwora is a young wing who can score in a pinch, but he hasn’t been brought back by the Raptors to this point. Though he’s shown flashes in Milwaukee, Indiana and Toronto, Nwora’s NBA future is unknown at this point. In 206 career appearances, the former No. 45 overall pick has averaged 7.6 points per game.

Talen Horton-Tucker made 11 starts for the Jazz last season and averaged 10.1 points and 3.5 assists per contest. While it’s possible the Jazz continue to develop the 23-year-old, there has been no indication so far that he remains in their plans.

Other young players like Omer Yurtseven, Dominick Barlow and Brandon Boston Jr. have had moments in the league, but none have found homes this offseason.

Davis Bertans feels likely to end up signing a deal with a contender, but his name hasn’t come up much in free agent conversations. Though he isn’t young, Bertans seemed to rehabilitate his value with Charlotte after averages 20.8 minutes last year after being acquired at the deadline, and he shot 37.5% from three on 6.3 attempts per game.

To be clear, the perceived lack of a market for the aforementioned players isn’t necessarily surprising. Tyus Jones and Gary Trent, though they reportedly passed on more lucrative offers, ended up only signing for the minimum. Teams are impacted by the CBA’s recent tax apron changes and a smaller-than-usual cap increase, resulting in a slower free agency this season.

Still, there’s always value to be found across professional basketball, and plenty of talented players are available to be signed by teams.

We want your input. Who do you think are the most underrated remaining free agents? Are there any players you feel are unfairly overlooked? Is there anyone we forgot?

Head to the comment section to let us know! We look forward to hearing your input.

Tidjane Salaun Shows Promise In Two Summer League Games

July 27th, 2024 at 9:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hornets rookie Tidjane Salaun only appeared in two Summer League games, but he has displayed a strong work ethic to go along with his physical talents, observes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. As the first draft pick under new president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson and head coach Charles Lee, Salaun is the type of self-starter they’re looking to build the organization around. “For me, it’s playing confidence,” Salaun said. “That makes the difference. That’s always been the key for me, always been the key for me, because when you have confidence even if the shot is hard with my confidence I know I’m going to make it.”

Reggie Jackson Gave Up $3.3MM In Hornets Buyout

July 24th, 2024 at 5:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran point guard Reggie Jackson, who was officially waived by the Hornets on Tuesday, reached a buyout agreement with the team that created the path for his exit, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). According to Scotto, Jackson gave up $3.3MM as part of the buyout.

Hoops Rumors has confirmed that Jackson surrendered exactly $3,303,771, which is the amount the 34-year-old will earn with the Sixers once he clears waivers and signs a new minimum-salary contract with Philadelphia.

The move reduces the amount of dead money on the Hornets’ books from $5,250,000 to $1,946,229, creating a little extra financial flexibility for the club. Charlotte is over the cap but has plenty of breathing room (approximately $16MM) below the luxury tax line.

As for Jackson, he’ll ultimately earn the same $5.25MM salary that he would’ve if he’d remained on his previous contract. He’ll be paid $1,946,229 by the Hornets and $3,303,771 by the Sixers — plus, he’ll now have the opportunity to play for a team much closer to title contention. He was traded from Denver to Charlotte earlier in the offseason.

Jackson is the second veteran point guard to give up money in a buyout agreement in recent days, joining Russell Westbrook, who surrendered $1.7MM when he was waived by the Jazz. Raptors forward Sasha Vezenkov was also bought out this week, having given up his entire $6.66MM salary to get out of his NBA contract in order to return to Greece.

Reggie Jackson To Join Sixers After Being Waived By Hornets

July 23rd, 2024 at 9:33am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets are waiving veteran point guard Reggie Jackson, league sources tell Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Boone had previously reported that the move was expected, and it’s now official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), Jackson intends to sign with the Sixers once he clears waivers.

Prior to Wojnarowski’s report, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer had tweeted that the 76ers would have interest in Jackson, who played with Paul George in Los Angeles from 2020-23.

A 13-year NBA veteran, Jackson spent the 2023/24 season in Denver, backing up Jamal Murray at the point. He averaged 10.2 points, 3.8 assists, and 1.9 rebounds in 22.2 minutes per game, posting a .431/.359/.806 shooting line in 82 outings (23 starts).

Jackson exercised a $5.25MM player option in June, but the Nuggets wanted to go in a different direction with their backup point guard spot and traded the 34-year-old to Charlotte along with multiple second-round picks in a salary-dump deal. Denver is poised to sign Russell Westbrook to fill the backcourt hole created by that deal.

The Hornets, meanwhile, made their trade with Denver in order to acquire those future second-round picks rather than Jackson, who wasn’t in their plans for 2024/25. It’s the second time in the last two years that Charlotte has traded for Jackson and waived him shortly thereafter — it also happened in February 2023, when the Clippers sent him to the Hornets in a deal for Mason Plumlee. Jackson was cut three few days later and caught on with Denver on the buyout market at that time.

Waiving Jackson will create an opening on Charlotte’s 15-man roster, leaving the team with 13 players on fully guaranteed contracts and one (Taj Gibson) on a partially guaranteed deal.

The Sixers, meanwhile, figure to bring Jackson aboard on a minimum-salary contract, since that’s all they can offer to free agents after having used up their cap space and their room exception. The veteran guard will be the 13th man on Philadelphia’s standard roster, providing additional depth in a backcourt that includes rising star Tyrese Maxey, veterans Kyle Lowry and Eric Gordon, and rookie Jared McCain.

A minimum deal for Jackson will pay him about $3.3MM while counting against the 76ers’ cap for just $2.09MM.

Serbia, Greece Set 12-Man Rosters For Olympics

July 23rd, 2024 at 9:10am CST by Luke Adams

Two more nations have set their 12-man rosters for the upcoming Olympic games in Paris, with Serbia and Greece both officially announcing their squads (Twitter links).

The Serbian roster is headlined by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and includes a few more NBA players beyond the Nuggets center. Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, Hornets guard Vasilije Micic, and Heat forward Nikola Jovic will also represent Serbia in Paris.

Jovic’s inclusion is particularly notable, since there was some uncertainty earlier this month about whether he’d be healthy enough to play. He injured his ankle during an offseason workout in Miami in June, but has apparently received medical clearance for the Olympics.

Nikola Milutinov, Ognjen Dobric, Vanja Marinkovic, Marko Guduric, Filip Petrusev, Aleksa Avramovic, Dejan Davidovac, and Uros Plavsic round out Serbia’s roster. Former NBA first-round pick Aleksej Pokusevski, who finished last season with the Hornets, isn’t among the final 12.

Meanwhile, Greece has also confirmed its Olympic roster, which will be led by another former NBA MVP, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Giannis is the only Antetokounmpo suiting up for Greece in France at this year’s event, since his brothers Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Kostas Antetokounmpo are both dealing with injuries.

While Giannis is the only active NBA player on the Greek roster, a few others have previously played in the league, including Nick Calathes, Georgios Papagiannis, and Kostas Papanikolaou. Former Stephen F. Austin standout Thomas Walkup also signed an NBA contract back in 2016, though he never appeared in a regular season game.

Dinos Mitoglou, Giannoulis Larentzakis, Vassilis Charalampopoulos, Nikos Chougkaz, Dimitris Moraitis, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, and Vassilis Toliopoulos make up the rest of Greece’s roster.

Serbia’s first pool-play game of the Olympics will take place on Sunday vs. Team USA, while Greece’s Olympic schedule will tip off a day earlier, with a Saturday showdown vs. Canada.

Taj Gibson Ready To Be Veteran Leader In Charlotte; Matt Morgan Has Perfect Shooting Night

July 20th, 2024 at 5:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

After signing a one-year deal with the Hornets, Taj Gibson is looking forward to being a veteran leader with a new organization. In an interview with Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer, Gibson talks about imparting the knowledge that he has picked up during his 15 NBA seasons. “It was very special for me coming in, because I came into the league in an era when we had multiple veterans on our team that taught you how to be a professional, how to look out for your teammates, how to be tough,” Gibson said. “There were times I would look at the bench and the vets would always give me that look or give me that dinner after a tough game. And it was really beneficial for my career because my career was able to go a long distance.”
Matt Morgan‘s perfect shooting night in the Summer League will give him more attention as he tries to land a two-way NBA contract or a new deal in Europe, per Eurohoops. The Hornets guard, who played for the London Lions last season, made all 11 of his shots from the field, including seven three-pointers, in Friday’s win over Portland.

Brandon Miller Talks USA Select Team, Josh Green, More

July 20th, 2024 at 1:42pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Following a high-scoring All-Rookie First Team debut season, Hornets forward Brandon Miller was invited to play for the USA Select Team against a stacked U.S. Olympic squad.

The Alabama alum reflected on the experience during a conversation with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

“I think that put me in a great place out there competing with the best at the highest level,” Miller said. “Of course, we were having fun competing. I think that was a great moment for me to be out there and show what I can bring to a team against top talent. It was a great opportunity.”

Miller is talented enough on the court that it’s conceivable he could make the actual Team USA squad for a future Olympics competition. Across 74 games last year (68 starts), the 6’9″ forward posted averages of 17.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.6 blocks per game with a .440/.373/.827 shooting line for the 21-61 Hornets.

His full conversation with Scotto is well worth reading in full. Below are some select highlights.

On his decision to partake in a second straight Summer League:

“I think it was to feel out the new coaching staff [under first-year head coach Charles Lee] because it’s going to be a new thing for everybody this year. I wanted to see how they wanted us to play. I think it also sets the tone (as far as leadership) for the year that we have coming up.”

On the addition of high-upside young shooting guard Josh Green to the team via trade:

“I think he brings a lot of defensive energy for us. I think that’s one thing we want to focus on this year, which is locking down on the defensive side. I think our defense will lead to our offense and transition. Josh is going to help us with that and, of course, his ability to knock down open shots. I think that’ll be big for us.”

On what fans can expect out of the club across the next five seasons:

“I think Charlotte fans should expect a playoff team. I think we’re going to bring energy every game and go out there and get as many wins as we can.”