ESPN Grades the Hornets' 2024 Draft Class

Charlotte receives average grade for their selections of Tidjane Salaün, KJ Simpson.

Virtually everyone in Charlotte was surprised with the Hornets' selection of Tidjane Salaün with the sixth overall pick in this year's draft. With Donovan Clingan and Dalton Knecht still on the board, many felt the Hornets would go with one of the two or perhaps trade back. Instead, they went with the raw, but high potential of Salaün.

Kevin Pelton of ESPN isn't a huge believer in the package of Salaün and second-round guard KJ Simpson, giving the Hornets a draft grade of C+.

"Reports suggested the Hornets would trade down from No. 6, but they stayed put and took Salaun toward the high end of his possible draft range. As when the Washington Wizards drafted Bilal Coulibaly No. 7 a year ago, this is a case of a new front office taking a young player (Salaun is still just 18) with an eye toward long-term upside and the risk that Salaun never develops into an NBA contributor. The Hornets made Simpson the third Colorado player drafted. Of the three, he was the best last season, averaging 19.7 PPG and 4.9 APG while shooting 43% from 3-point range."

It's hard to disagree with Pelton here. Salaün's potential is intriguing, but there's not telling when he'll be a rotational player and how much of an impact he'll have. Simpson is going to have a hard time adjusting to the NBA game due to his size and is a bit of a long shot to see the floor in the next couple of years.

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