Bringing Back the Buzz: Zo & '92-93 Hornets

[studbucket]

In a simulated game, the Hornets streak almost ended against a poor Nets team. However Larry Johnson led the team back from a double digit deficit and they won in overtime. As you can see in the box score, Grandmama got 46 points and 16 rebounds, but on the negative side of things Dell Curry went 0-8 from deep.

Next up: another big game against the Cavaliers, but this time everyone is healthy (for both teams).

[studbucket]

It’s been a wild ride, but the Hornets haven’t lost since a 25 point thrashing at the hands of the Grizzlies on December 11. Since then, they’ve rattled off an absurd 33 game winning streak and have taken control of the Eastern Conference. Larry Johnson is getting MVP buzz, Alonzo Mourning is being considered for Rookie of the Year, and people around the country are marveling at the job Coach J has done in his first year as an NBA coach.

However, people aren’t ready to hand them the crown yet. They may be 7 games ahead of the Cavaliers (40-15), but the season series is tied at 1-1 and the Cavs have gotten Kevin Love, Iman Shumpert, and Tristan Thompson back from injury. While it doesn’t make their starting lineup radically stronger, it greatly improves their bench, which is where the Hornets can be taken advantage of. However, even with the team getting healthy, the Cavs are a frustrating 3-7 in their last 10, including a 112-79 blowout in the hands of Detroit 2 nights ago.

The Hornets welcome Kendall Gill back this game, which gives Coach J a big decision to make. Does he go with the recently healed and great scorer Gill? Or does he start Roberson to shut down LeBron and use Gill as a bench scorer?

Coach J ended up starting Roberson to make life harder for LeBron and kept Gill on the bench as a supersub to provide some offense when Johnson and Curry take a breather. Gill did provide a spark off of the bench, but LeBron did what he wanted to, no matter who was guarding him, which became obvious in the first quarter.

1st Quarter

Both teams started out hot in the first quarter. It took LeBron a few shots to warm up, but once he did he started finding open looks all over the floor and finished the first quarter with 14 points, which was complemented by 9 from Kyrie Irving (who started the game 4/4 with a three).

The Hornets kept a small lead with great passing and points in the paint. Led by Mourning’s 8 points, Charlotte had a 30-29 lead after one.

2nd Quarter

In a tightly contested 2^nd quarter, it was the Irving vs Mourning show. The Cavs kept hitting the Hornets on the break and Tommy Camper could not slow down Alonzo Mourning at all. Both players finished with 21 points at the half and outshined their teammates, especially Kyrie Irving. LeBron had no points in the 2^nd quarter and Kevin Love was effectively invisible in the first half.

3rd Quarter

In the 3^rd quarter, Kevin Love decided to show up, getting 2 easy layups off of pick and rolls and following that by a three pointer, but that wasn’t enough for Cleveland to pull away. The quarter was truly a back-and-forth one: when the Hornets missed, the Cavaliers missed. When Cleveland made a shot, Charlotte answered. However, Cleveland subbed out LeBron and the Hornets went on a run, getting up by as much as 10 before some poor play let Cleveland close it to a 4 point difference at the break.

4th Quarter

Things didn’t change much in the 4^th quarter, as it was the ‘Zo show. After the game, Coach J from refrained on commenting on his former college player’s struggles, saying “I’ll give Tommy a call later.” It was obvious he didn’t want to run salt in the wound after Camper allowed most of Mourning’s 45 points on a remarkable 20-25 shooting. Midway through the 4^th, David Blatt had his team start double-teaming Mourning in the post, but it made little difference. Mourning used great vision to find an open teammate for an easy shot. This was never more apparent than after the Cavaliers brought the game to within 3 with 1:30 left. Larry Johnson got the ball on the left low block and was immediately doubled. He turned and threw the ball across the lane to a wide open Mourning. The Cavs quickly doubled, but left Johnson wide open. Zo hit him with a return pass and Grandmama finished with an emphatic dunk.

After that, Cleveland couldn’t make their shots and resorted to fouling Charlotte. They found some false hope after Roberson missed 4 free throws and they hit 2 straight threes, but Gill and Curry sealed the game for the Hornets by hitting their free throws.

Despite the loss, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James played extraordinarily well. Irving had 39 points and LeBron was a great team player, finishing with 27 points, 5 rebounds, and 15 assists. The Cavs found the most success with their second unit of Varejao, Thompson and Williams on the floor, but couldn’t keep it up against Charlotte’s first team.

The loss drops Cleveland 8 games behind Charlotte in the East, and realistically ends their hopes of getting the first seed. Charlotte has a reasonable stretch coming up, with 2 games against mediocre Indiana, a game against the terrible 76ers (who just fired their coach and hired Lloyd Pierce), and they invite a slumping Phoenix team to town. The biggest challenge will be heading to 3^rd-place Atlanta. The Hawks spacing and shooting could present problems for the Hornets, who excel at defending the paint.

[studbucket]

Merry Christmas everyone! Thanks to those of you who read and follow along.

[studbucket]

Note: the intricacies of the NBA salary cap are unknown to me, as I’m more of an NFL/MLS fan. So I have read the Wikipedia article on the NBA cap, but that doesn’t mean I fully understand it. If I get something wrong, feel free to correct me.

With first place in the East almost locked up, Coach J turned his attention to some possible offseason moves he could make to pick up some veterans for the team this offseason. Which players will be sticking around next year? Which will he let walk? He’s assuming there will be at least a $10 million cap increase, up to $80 million, and the luxury tax level should be above $90 million.

So given the contract situation, how does the roster break down?

Essential

• Alonzo Mourning - $16,700,000
• Larry Johnson - $16,700,000
• Kendall Gill - $10,200,000

These 3 make up the core of the team and will hopefully be in Charlotte for the next 10-15 (or 20) years. All three contracts expire in 2018, so the Hornets will need to make sure that there’s plenty of cap space available in 2 years.

Useful Players

• Avery Bradley - $8,270,000
• Dell Curry - $6,500,00

These players have added a lot of value this year and would be nice to keep around. However, their deals expire at the same time as the guys above. Curry is getting older and should look for less money, but Bradley is on the rise and could ask for a deal similar to what Kendall Gill is expecting. Charlotte may only get another 2 years of Bradley before they trade him or let him walk.

Expiring Deals

• Taj Gibson – $8,950,000

Gibson has been wonderful for the Hornets this year, but $9m is a lot of money for a backup PF, and Coach J has aspirations to upgrade other positions. There should be teams willing to take on his expiring contract and allow the Hornets to pursue their offseason targets.

Team Options

• Kelly Olynyk - $3,090,00
• Andre Roberson - $2,180,000
• Bryce Cotton - $980,000

Kelly Olynyk will definitely be coming back, as his $3 million price tag is a bargain to be a sharp shooting backup big man. Roberson has been very valuable this year, but he’s such a liability on offense, the Hornets will let him test free agency before bringing him back. Bryce Cotton will be lucky to be on a roster next year, but does have a decent 3 point shot.

Player Options

• Cole Aldrich - $1,230,000

It would be great if Aldrich chooses to come back, but at a number that low, it would be a shock if he doesn’t test the market.

Free Agents

• Kenny Gattison, PF
• Ramon Sessions, PG
• Robert Williams, PG

Gattison and Williams will be let go. Sessions will be a nice backup PG, but Coach J wants to see how the draft and free agency goes before committing to him.

So, if all goes according to plan, these will be the Hornets players sticking around (in a depth chart format):
PG – Avery Bradley
SG – Dell Curry
SF – Kendall Gill
PF – Larry Johnson
C – Alonzo Mourning
6 – Kelly Olynyk

That leaves a lot of spaces to fill. The Hornets need at least 2 more big men and 3 more guards/small forwards. Coach J knows that at least one of those will come in the draft, but there isn’t a ton of cap room to sign another 5-6 players.

Targets
Who will the Hornets pick up via trades or free agency to supplement the returning players? Coach J will assume he has about $61,500,000 in salaries, which leaves $18.5 million in cap space to sign players.

Free Agency
In priority order, here are the players Coach J wants to go after. You’ll notice that he’s going after his former Wisconsin players.

1) Joey Fletcher, PG, 22
Fletcher has had an amazing rookie year and the Hornets need a true point guard. Will he be willing to leave New York? Can he be even better running a fast-paced offense and away from Carmelo’s black hole? Coach J wants to go all-in to get the young PG, but we’ll see what’s possible.

2) Wallace Anrin, SG, 27
Anrin’s foot should be mostly healed, but he’ll need to get back into games shape. The biggest concern may be his high salary demands. Despite sitting out a year, he still may be asking for more than $8 million a year. Anrin would immediately slot into the starting lineup alongside Kendall Gill, moving Dell Curry to the bench if signed.

3) Paul Noonan, SG, 29
Paul Noonan would give the Hornets another deadly 3 point shooter…provided Noonan can stay clear of his previous life troubles. Coach J believes he can surround Noonan with positive influences and

4) Romain Martin, SG, 29
Martin would provide a solid shooter off of the bench and could play the 2 or the 3. Coach J would like to sign him regardless, but Martin does play like a poor man’s Wallace Anrin, so is a decent consolation prize. He also may be able to fit into the mid-level exception.

5) Veteran big man (David West, Nene, Larry Sanders)
Coach J will need another player to come off the bench alongside Olynyk (and maybe Aldrich). Whoever Coach J can get for cheap would work fine here.

6) Chief Bing, C, 25
It would be great for Coach J to get “The Chief” but he expects his price to be a bit high, and Chief is good enough he likely won’t want to sit behind Mourning. Of course, if he does sign in Charlotte, Coach J could start Mourning and Bing and move Larry Johnson to SF.

7) Tommy Camper, C, 25
Similar to Chief Bing, Coach J doesn’t expect Camper to be available, but if he is and the price is right, Coach J will make it work. Camper would likely be thrilled to learn from Coach J again, and he wouldn’t have to guard Mourning anymore.

8) Hope Law, SG, 22
Hope Law looks like he’ll be one of the hottest free agents on the market this summer, and the chances for Coach J to get him are slim. If Coach J wants to break the bank for Law, that could mean the Hornets say goodbye to Dell Curry and may not be able to keep Kendall Gill long term.

9) Kevin Martin, SG, 33
A veteran with a great stroke, Coach J would be happy to add Martin to the bench for 15 minutes a game of sharpshooting.

10) Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF, 21
11) Andrew Wiggins, SF, 21
It’s unlikely that either of these players are available (although the Greek Freak has been moved to 6th man in Milwaukee), but if Coach J misses out on his previous targets, he may choose to swing for the fences and get a super talented SF and move Gill to SG.

Trades
Dennis Schroder, PG, ATL
Schroder’s deal is expiring in ATL and he hasn’t seen a lot of playing time behind all the guards there. The Hornets may be able to unload Taj Gibson or some draft picks to get Schroder as a backup PG, and perhaps a PG for the future if the Hornets are unable to sign Fletcher.

Khrys Middleton, SG, MIL
Indicative of the ineptitude in Milwaukee, Middleton has been on the bench most of the year, with OJ Mayo starting over him. If the Bucks don't value his shooting, Coach J will.

[studbucket]

We’re 61 games into the season, and I’ve probably played 15-20 of those games. I love 2K16 and the sliders I started out with, but I think a few changes need to be made for next season. I can’t help that I keep winning all these simulated games, but I can make the games I play a bit tougher. Starting next year, I will do the following:

• Use 11 minute quarters, not 12. This will help with the high scores I’ve been seeing.
• Tweak the sliders so my players don’t randomly throw the ball out of bounds as much. It’s happening 3-5 times a game, and I don’t believe awful passes just sail out of bounds that often. I’m good enough at throwing the ball away, I don’t need help.
• Tweak the sliders so the CPU shoots a higher percentage for 2 point shots.

I may also look into increasing the difficulty and/or dropping sliders that impact my shooting (although my high % is because I get a lot of fast breaks and points in the paint).

Charlotte heads into Atlanta as winners of 35 straight, but the Hawks are good in their own right. They currently sit 4^th in the East, just a half game behind the Bulls for the 3^rd spot. They are a great shooting team, with Jeff Teague, Hope Law, and Kyle Korver just a few of the team’s sharpshooters. However, former Coach J mentee Hope Law is day-to-day with an injury and the Hawks aren’t letting people know if he’ll see the floor tonight or not.

Hope Law didn’t play, but early on, the Hawks didn’t miss him. Kyle Korver went 4-4 on easy buckets without even needing to take a three, taking advantage of some lazy defense. However, the Hornets were on fire and playing like a team in the first quarter and Atlanta only went 1-6 from deep. Larry Johnson had 8 points and 6 rebounds in the first quarter.

The Hornets put the game away in the 2^nd quarter, despite some stretches of sloppy play and Atlanta hitting several threes. The rest of the game was much the same, with the most noteworthy events being Charlotte starting missing 4/5 shots to start the 3^rd quarter, with all the misses being failed layups or dunks. One of them was Kendall Gill’s 3^rd missed alley oop dunk of the game. If it weren’t for that, Charlotte likely would have been up by a lot more than 18 heading into the 4^th.

Atlanta’s biggest mistake was likely not getting the ball to Horford or Millsap. Both are great shooters from inside and out, and could have stretched the floor and gotten open looks. However, Atlanta’s guards rarely looked to get them the ball.

This is Charlotte’s 50^th win, and they have a set of very winnable games coming up before needing to face the Pelicans and Rockets in the same week.

[trekfan]

WHEW. Well, say goodbye to the Lakers legendary streak, Charlotte now has it and looks to continue to build on it. What a way to perform in the last stretch of the season. This team will be a monster in the playoffs, assuming no injuries hit.

Those free agent thoughts are certainly interesting -- I'd be very hesitant to do too much with this team, seeing how well they're performing, but they're only going to get better with Larry Johnson and Mourning, that's for certain.

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by trekfan

WHEW. Well, say goodbye to the Lakers legendary streak, Charlotte now has it and looks to continue to build on it. What a way to perform in the last stretch of the season. This team will be a monster in the playoffs, assuming no injuries hit. Those free agent thoughts are certainly interesting -- I'd be very hesitant to do too much with this team, seeing how well they're performing, but they're only going to get better with Larry Johnson and Mourning, that's for certain.

Yeah, the streak has really been remarkable.

Fletcher is probably a pipe dream, but I'd love to get 2 out of Anrin, Noonan, and Martin and then supplement with Sessions/Roberson/Aldrich-level players. Some of my other thoughts are probably too ambitious and I don't want to stretch myself too thin financially because I will want to keep my big 3 guys.

[studbucket]

This is the 3^rd in a series of posts about Coach J’s college career. To see the 2^nd post about Boise State, click here.

After putting the country on notice with some remarkable Boise State teams, Coach J took his talents to Madison, Wisconsin to take over the Badgers for a retiring Bo Ryan. Those are huge shoes to fill. Can Coach J fill them? Can he finally get that national title that has eluded them?

No rebuilding project was needed here. The Badgers were already a good team and among the favorites to win the Big 10 title. Led by the twin towers Tommy Camper and Chief Bing, no teams in the country could match up with the Badgers front court. The backcourt was filled with solid, but not great, 3 point shooters, although young PG Chris Callahan wasn’t even good enough to start for Coach J’s EIU teams, which wasn’t a positive sign. With Bing and Camper being Juniors, Coach J was hoping he’d have 2 full seasons with them and that some impact freshman could be brought in for next season.

2012-2013 Season
In his first season at Wisconsin, Coach J found success. Riding his big men and some 3 point shooting from Hilton Hart & Brian Delgado (who holds the Wisconsin record with 6 three pointers in a game), the Badgers won the Big 10 regular season title and got a high seed in the dance.

However, Coach J couldn’t repeat his success from the previous year at Boise State and only won 2 games before getting knocked out in the Sweet 16. Wisconsin finished with a 27-7 record.

2013-2014 Season
In the 2013-14 season, Coach J welcomed aboard his signature recruiting class in PG Joey Fletcher and SG Hope Law, giving the Badgers a backcourt to match their All-American frontcourt. They were young, however, and the consistency and chemistry wouldn’t be at optimal levels. Coach J would have to make due, as expectations were sky high. Junior Hilton Hart was 6^th man, bringing great shooting off of the bench, but it was a frustrating season for the Badgers. They did end up (barely) winning the Big 10, and did have a few highlights. PG Joey Fletcher set a school record by averaging 5.8 assists per game. Tommy Camper also used his athleticism to get to the line over and over again and make a school record 154 free throws.

However, the Badgers turned things on in the tournament and made it to the Elite 8 and finished with a 26-10 record. People were beginning to question if Coach J was really all people said he was, given two underperforming years with the nation’s best big man tandem. Coach J would silence his doubters, however, as this 10-loss performance would be the worst of his career.

2014-2015 Season
In 2014-15, Coach J had his first season without Camper and Bing, but the Badgers would make up for that with 4 great shooters:

• Joey Fletcher, PG, Sophomore
• Hope Law, SG, Sophomore
• Brian Delgado, SG, Senior
• Hilton Hart, SG, Senior

And 4 freshman big men:

• Varney Shepard, 7’3” Center
• Eto Ruffin, well-rounded PF
• Cam Nuuallitia, stretch 4
• Mamadou Banjo, athletic undersized Center

It’s an interesting mix, but a very talented team as the 4 freshman Coach J brought in were all highly regarded and ready to contribute…and contribute they did. Coach J’s Badgers went 28-9, won another Big 10 championship and made it all the way to the Final Four before losing. It was heartbreaking to get so close and lose it, especially for Seniors Delgado and Hart, but the future looked bright for the huge frontcourt. Joey Fletcher set a school record with 97 steals and Eto Ruffin averaged 5.4 rebounds a game as a freshman.

2015-2016 Season
Expectations were sky high for the 2015-2016 season. The backcourt were now juniors, the 4 big men were sophomores, and Coach J added 2 athletic swingmen (Jerret Carmichael and Everson Wade) and a promising backup PG (Freddy Tobias) in this recruiting class. This team went 30-5, getting more Big 10 championships and entering the tourney with a high seed. Unfortunately, the Wisconsin team crashed and burned in the 2^nd round of the tournament. Unable to get their post game working and not hitting their shots, it was a disappointing exit for the team.

2016-2017 Season
Would 2016-17 turn out to be the magical season for Coach J? Most of the starting lineup were now upperclassmen, with only Sophomore Jerrett Carmichael being younger. Draft buzz was heating up around Junior Varney Shepard and Senior guards Fletcher and Law and Coach J would need to work hard to keep the players focused on this college season.

Wing man Everson Wade was redshirted, and Coach J only had 2 new minor additions to his rotation. Wingman Johnny Clark and 7’5” freshman from Philadelphia, Rusian Pierce. This meant better team chemistry than Coach J has seen in his previous 4 years in Madison, and it showed up on the court. Here’s just a sampling of the school records set during the 2016-17 season:

• Points per game: Varney Shepard (26.25)
• Field goal percentage: Eto Ruffin (71.7%)
• Three pointers made: Jerret Carmichael (72)
• Three point percentage: Jerret Carmichael (42.9%)
• Rebounds per game: Varney Shepard (7.9)
• Assists per game: Joey Fletcher (7.25)
• Pointers per game: 87.0
• Three point percentage: 39.6%
• Free throw percentage: 78.4%
• Rebounds: 1108
• Assists: 769
• Steals: 456
• Points, single game: Varney Shepard (47)
• Rebounds, single game: Varney Shepard (15)
• Assists, single game: Joey Fletcher (15)
  • Note, this was in the national championship game against Duke
• Points in a game: 114 vs Clemson

The Badgers rolled to a 37-4 record on the season and finally cut down the nets, beating Duke for the title. Madison, WI was in a near frenzy and some students even tried (unsuccessfully) to dye the lake red.

With a national title in the bag, Coach J was looking forward to defending the national title. Next year’s team had a much different look. Carmichael was the only great shooter on the team, and nobody in the starting 5 was taller than 6’10”, but all 5 of them could shoot 30% from three and were highly athletic. He was especially excited about what 6’8” SF Everson Wade could do, as he was extremely quick off the dribble and was a ferocious dunker.

However, Coach J received an offer he couldn’t refuse later that summer as he was invited to join the staff of the Charlotte Hornets and mold that young team into a contender.

Wisconsin Badger Single Game – Team Records

Wisconsin Badger Single Game – Player Records

Wisconsin Badger Season – Team Records

Wisconsin Badger Season – Player Records

Wisconsin Badger Career – Player Records