Doug Branson here, the host of the daily Locked On Hornets podcast, with your daily Locked On Hornets newsletter. Each day we bring you the biggest stories about the Hornets and the NBA, including the hottest links to other stories you need to read. Plus, Josh Lloyd delivers daily fantasy notes to crush your league.
Realistic Goals for the Charlotte Hornets in 2024-25
Oct 8, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (1) and forward Brandon Miller (24) at mid court against the Miami Heat during the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images|Jim Dedmon/Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
Setting Realistic Expectations for the Hornets
As the NBA regular season kicks off, the Charlotte Hornets find themselves in a unique position. Ranked 25th in ESPN’s 2024-2025 NBA preview, the Hornets are entering a season of evaluation rather than immediate contention. With a projected 33.8% chance of making the playoffs and an estimated 37 wins, the focus is on assessing the roster’s potential and building a foundation for future success.
ESPN’s Chris Herring highlights the importance of health for the Hornets this season. The team needs a good run of health to properly evaluate its roster, especially with new coach Charles Lee at the helm. The Hornets have wisely avoided setting unrealistic expectations, allowing them to focus on development and improvement. This approach is crucial, given the team’s recent history of injuries and the need to understand how the current roster fits together.
Strengths and Weaknesses: A Closer Look
The Hornets’ strengths lie in their young talent, particularly second-year wing Brandon Miller, who showed promise last season. His progression, alongside LaMelo Ball’s playmaking abilities, forms the backbone of the team’s offensive potential. However, the Hornets face significant challenges, particularly in offensive efficiency. Last season, they ranked 28th in this category, struggling to create easy points and ranking last in free throw attempt rate.
The team’s ability to improve in these areas hinges on the health and development of key players like Ball and Miller. Ball’s presence on the court is crucial for transition play, an area where the Hornets have the potential to excel. However, the team must also address its free throw rate and offensive rebounding to enhance overall efficiency.
The Hornets’ defensive identity remains a work in progress. While there have been strides, the roster’s current construction may not support an elite defense. The focus will be on individual improvements and establishing a culture of daily improvement, as emphasized by the coaching staff.
The Path Forward
The Hornets’ strategy of investing in the team’s future is evident in their roster moves and infrastructure investments, such as the new practice facility. This commitment allows the team to take the necessary time to evaluate its roster without the pressure of immediate playoff expectations. As LaMelo Ball’s contract progresses, the urgency to build a competitive team will increase, but for now, the focus is on laying a solid foundation.
For more insights and a deeper dive into the Charlotte Hornets’ season outlook, tune into the Locked On Hornets podcast for this and much more.
Other Topics in Today’s Locked On Hornets Podcast:
- Analysis of the Hornets’ latest round of roster cuts
- Strengths and weaknesses of the current roster
- The impact of injuries on the team’s performance
- Expectations for new coach Charles Lee’s first season
- The role of young players in the Hornets’ future plans
As someone who just celebrated a birthday — a milestone birthday — I’ll admit that aging has been on my mind. Its privileges, its gifts, its expectations and assumptions (especially for women), aging can feel overwhelming, particularly wrought, even if you’ve made relative peace through the years with it.
Much of my writing is concerned with the nuances around basketball and its athletes, particularly the elements that underscore them as people. Strange to call “humanity” a nuance, but that can be the flattening of pro sports. Athletes aging is something larger fandom is pretty bad at processing, to the point where, in the NBA, anyone over 28 is considered long in the tooth and anyone over 35, ancient. The churn of the Draft, with its college phenoms and untapped prospects, makes it so we have a continually replenishing assembly line of young athletes ready to oust the old, often in a way that we don’t actually witness. Very few NBA athletes announce their retirements or make their exits from the league public, they just sort of… vanish, and with them goes our public consciousness of them.
In his postgame presser on Wednesday night, after the Warriors had beat the Pelicans for the second time on a two day back-to-back, Draymond Green touched on aging. Well, not explicitly, but his lengthy answer when asked about his impactful defensive efforts throughout Golden State’s first five contests was telling. Namely, because he brought up two of the youngest centers in the league, Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama.
Katie Heindl is a credentialed NBA and WNBA writer, her bylines have appeared with The New York Times Magazine, SLAM, The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Dime, Rolling Stone, among others. She writes the bestselling Substack, Basketball Feelings and is working on a book of the same name.
Home and Away
Opponent Al Horford, who started the first five games of the season for the Celtics, will be out tonight for load management as the Hornets host the Celtics at 7 p.m. (Boston Herald)
Must Watch Every NBA player knows about The Skirvin Hotel in Oklahoma City. Pablo Torre needed to know more, so he sent two reporters out to stay at what’s dubbed OKC’s “most haunted hotel.”
Feel Good They’re all kids at heart. Check out how players from around the league celebrated Halloween. (ESPN)
Must Read Pure talent, or being good in the room? Inc. looks at how certain personality types are affecting roster decisions in the league.
Fantasy Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Cheat Sheet
Paolo Banchero Injured - The Fantasy Basketball Fallout
Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams (44) defends Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) during the second half at United Center.|Photo by David Banks-Imagn Images
As we dive into the latest NBA action, the fantasy landscape is ever-changing, with injuries and unexpected performances shaping our strategies. The recent news of Paolo Banchero’s injury is a significant blow for both the Orlando Magic and fantasy managers. Banchero is set to miss four to six weeks due to a torn abdominal muscle, which means a reevaluation around mid-December. This absence leaves a gaping hole in the Magic’s lineup, and the question remains: who will step up?
Orlando Magic’s Lineup Dilemma
The obvious choice might be Jonathan Isaac, but his limited minutes due to health concerns make this uncertain. Isaac’s potential is undeniable, yet his ability to sustain a starting role is questionable. Mo Wagner has been suggested as a possible fill-in, but his experience at power forward is limited. The Magic might opt for a more unconventional approach, possibly pushing Franz Wagner to the four and utilizing a three-guard lineup with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Jalen Suggs, and Anthony Black. Black, although not a high scorer, could contribute across various categories, making him a viable fantasy consideration.
The situation is fluid, and while Wendell Carter Jr. should be a priority add if available, the rest of the lineup remains a puzzle. Fantasy managers should keep a close eye on the Magic’s rotations in the coming games to identify any emerging trends.
Click the button below to see who should be on your waiver radar, plus the fantasy impact of Desmond Bane’s injury for Memphis.
Don’t let these episodes pass you by — stay locked in with the latest Locked On Hornets podcasts.
Charlotte Hornets Bench Dominates with 72 Points, LaMelo Ball’s Heat Check & Defensive Concerns With 72 points off the bench, the Charlotte Hornets explode on offense and survive a rocky defensive night. Can they carry this firepower into tougher matchups?
Miles Bridges Reveals MAJOR Changes to LaMelo Ball’s Game Miles Bridges speaks openly about LaMelo’s new maturity and winning focus, sparking a discussion on the impact of his growth for the Hornets’ playoff hopes. They also touch on trade speculation surrounding Vasa Micic, exploring potential moves and whether Micic’s recent struggles could make him expendable. Finally, the duo previews tonight’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors, highlighting key injury updates and discussing why rebounding and limiting turnovers will be critical for the Hornets to secure a much-needed win.
Are the Charlotte Hornets already in a must win against the Raptors?? David Walker joins the pod to discuss the upcoming Raptors/Hornets game on Wednesday. Are the Hornets already in a must win? How can the Hornets navigate the upcoming schedule against some of the best teams? Finally the guys transition into more weekend observations and players who could lose their spot in the rotation.
