December Mailbag | Why Has Charlotte's Defense Regressed? Realistic FA Targets in 2024? Future GM/Coach Combos? + More

You asked, James Plowright answered

I asked fans for their questions on X and received an overwhelming number of responses on various thought provoking topics. I enjoyed this so much I'm going to try and turn the mailbag into a monthly feature during the season.

Imraan "Who would be your favorite candidate for GM and head coach going forward?"

Whenever new management or ownership comes into a franchise, it's wide to look at their past connections. Rick Schnall has more links in the NBA thank Plotkin due to being a minority owner in Atlanta between 2015-2023. Trust between ownership, the front office and the coach is sacred in the NBA, especially for a first time ownership group.

To be realistic I'll take into account these past connections and choose Travis Schlenk as the new President of Basketball Operations. Schlenk is currently VP of player personnel with the Washington Wizards, but more importantly was the president of basketball operations with the Hawks between 2017-2022. Before Atlanta, he spent 16 years in Golden State's front office. Schlenk has experience building teams around all-star point guards with defensive question marks in Steph Curry and Trae Young.

For coach, I can't think of a better candidate than Mike Budenholzer. He has an impressive head coaching resume as an NBA champion with Milwaukee and five impressive seasons in Atlanta. Coach Bud has a relationship with both Schlenk and Schnall, I would expect him to be the first name on the list. Bucks coach Adrian Griffin needs to not get himself fired as if that happens a potential Budenholzer and Milwaukee reunion could be on the cards.

Matt Mayers "Do you foresee Charlotte making a last ditch effort to save the season at the deadline, or do you expect they will ride it out until the offseason and reset?"

Any short term move to try and save this season is highly unlikely, the new owners preached patience and without saying it made it clear there was no rush this season to make the playoffs. They are using this season to evaluate every part of the franchise, judging by results so far they won't have been too impressed. I expect a complete overhaul of the basketball operations department within the next six months, when that occurs you can begin to expect a more pro-active front office approach. It's easy to look smart when you take very few risks, and in my opinion that's the approach the current front office has taken. Any moves the team do make will likely be an eye on the long term success of the franchise.

Senor Fantastico "Who is more likely to get traded at the deadline: Hayward or Rozier?"

Gordon Hayward, comfortably. Hayward's contract expires at the end of this season where he becomes a free agent and the Hornets risk losing him for nothing. He plays a position which overlaps with Miller and Bridges, who I anticipate the team viewing as their future on the wing. Finally, Hayward is 34 years old with a long injury history, the drop in consistency has already started and I only expect it to get worse as time goes on.

Rozier on the other hand is clearly the emotional leader of the team and has shown he can play a variety of roles both on and off the ball. With two years left on his contract after this, I view him as an important part of the team going forward but in a 6th man role role. Would Terry be happy with that approach? I hope so.

Jason Bourne "Why has this team has regressed on defense and rebounding compared to last season?"

This is a complex answer. So far this season they have had less talented defenders on the floor. Dennis Smith Jr, Kelly Oubre, Mason Plumlee, Jalen McDaniels all left at the trade deadline or in free agency. They were replaced by either inexperienced young players who notoriously struggle defensively (Miller/Williams) or by someone who has been unavailable (Ntilikina/Bridges). Long term I have no doubt Miller and Williams will be above average defenders, but they're in the learning phase right now. 

A compounding impact of all the injuries is the inconsistency in lineups. We're now a quarter of the way into the season players are still finding themselves in lineups with other players for the first time. For a high basketball IQ team with experience that would be less of an issue, but this team so often looks naive compared to their opponents. All the length, athleticism and effort in the world means nothing if a team struggles to communicate effectively, are constantly out-thought and are slow to recognise and react.  

Whatever system or philosophy the coaches are trying to instil is not working. Without being at practices and shootarounds, it's difficult to understand how to distribute the appropriate level of blame. One thing history tells us, is it will always be the coach who is first to fall on the sword.

Everything Buzz City "What should be the targets (that are realistic) in free agency this offseason?"

I think bringing back Miles Bridges is priority number one for the franchise. After that, OG Anunoby is the name that stands out to me. He might cost $30+ million per year, but his combination of defense, physicality and shooting is exactly what this Hornets roster needs. The issue is if you are Anunoby, why would you sign in Charlotte when there will likely be 5-10 playoff teams also interested in your services?

There are some interesting restricted free agents, Isaac Okoro and Patrick Williams could be names to watch if their situations go south. On the more attainable side, this team's needs some experienced role players who play with physicality and toughness. Royce O'Neal, Nnaji Marshall, Kyle Anderson, Josh Okogie all fit the bill and would be attainable with the mid-level exception or below. If PJ Tucker is open to taking the Udonis Haslem role, sign me up for that too.

Totally Not Alex "Should Hornet fans be worried about the Hornets medical staff? Hornet players seem to be more injury prone than any other organization in the NBA."

The media and fans have very little insight into what really goes on with medical teams, they rely on unclear and inconsistent medical updates and then make assumptions off that. That said, I think the answer to the questions is yes and no.

Injuries such as fractures and ankle sprains can't be avoided, these are luck based injuries which no medical staff in the world can prevent from happening. Recovery is straight forward, players can play when the bone is healed or with a sprain once they have a range of movement and can tolerate any lingering soreness. When a player returns is decided by the player and team together, so when someone re-aggravates an ankle sprain like LaMelo Ball last season, there is no sole person to blame, it's a risk that both parties were comfortable to take.

However, injuries such as muscle strains or tendentious/soreness injuries which require ongoing monitoring, treatment and load managing are where medical staffs have most input. Cody Martin would fall into this category, in his case it seems likely the team have misdiagnosed him at some stage or the treatment they have recommended has been ineffective. Now the question nobody knows, was it even the Hornets medical team who diagnosed him or an external specialist?  If you asked the medical team to go back in time, I'm certain they would have chosen a different approach. We also can't forget last season when Gordon Hayward's wife took to social media writing "I'm over them not protecting players". This understandably drew attention and impacted fans confidence in the medical team, there are certainly some questions that publicly we haven't had answers to.

BREAKING: Gordon Hayward's Wife Provides Details Behind Shoulder Injury

Theodore Treherne "As an Australian watching it’s difficult to gauge markets etc. my question is; why is Charlotte never seemingly a spot for free agents."

Market size was traditionally rated by TV Viewing figures, in which Charlotte have always ranked towards the bottom third of the league. As time has gone on and TV has become less important, the term "market size" has evolved to have a fuzzier definition. I would argue various factors now feed into it. Commercial/brand opportunities for a player, size of the city, the city's place within pop/celebrity culture, a large and committed fan base, state tax laws. 

Charlotte would likely rank towards the bottom of the league in each of those areas, which is why no matter how exactly you define "Market size" it will be referred to as a small market. It is by no means the smallest market, Memphis, New Orleans, Oklahoma City and Milwaukee all rank lower. Small market teams have had success at signing free agents, but history tells us they have to be playoff calibre teams with championship aspirations and will likely have to significantly overpay.

Rich Giunta "Steve Clifford’s teams have historically been much better in the second half of the season. Do you think that happens this year and we make a play in push?"

Good knowledge from you Rich, as you're spot on with your observation. I imagine it will happen again this year as this team gets healthier and because they can't get much worse defensively than right now. My counter point is if you can't get your team ready to play for the first 41 games, that's a huge issue in itself. I don't see a play-in push happening as I expect the Hornets to go into seller mode at the trade deadline.

Josh Gattis "How does the organization view JT Thor’s future- is he part of the long term plan?"

Towards the end of last season Thor showed positive strides averaging 9.6 pts 3.9reb 0.9blk FG 45% 3FG 40%. Over summer the reports were he had put on more weight and had a positive training camp. Unfortunately, despite having a rotation role in the first 10 games with Bridges suspended, he struggled.

Thor is still only 21 years old and has been praised by Clifford as one of the best "Workers" on the team. Due to that work ethic and physical gifts, I expect him to have his 2024-25 option picked up next season. However, he needs to start making strides as a rebounder, being a more disruptive defender and showing some resemblance of an ability to put the ball on the floor without turning it over. If we are having the same conversation we are now in 18 months, the team might look to move on.

The Thunderous Rise of JT Thor

Bishop Don Ron "Why doesn’t Nick smith jr play more minutes?"

Three reasons. Turnovers, fouling and defense. There is no doubt that Smith has shown to have a good motor and explosive scoring ability, but overall he is too mistake prone right now. 

Smith has struggled with turnovers in summer league, G-league and now the NBA. He can't play point guard (yet), then when playing him at the two he lacks the size and strength to guard NBA level players. That ends up with him picking up cheap fouls or getting lost in off-ball actions. If he clears those areas up, he's in the rotation. 

Karl Gmeiner "3 years from now, will the Hornets be Brandon Miller’s team?"

It's too early to say for sure, but I think it could be. Despite being behind Ball in experience, his positional value, size and two way ability in my opinion make his ceiling slightly higher. The key dynamic I'm looking for in the coming years is how the leadership dynamic develops with Ball and Miller. Ball so far has proved to be a much loved teammate, but hasn't emerged as the emotional leader of the team, that's been Terry Rozier. Could Miller as he gains experience show some leadership characteristics and embrace that responsibility? I would bet on Miller over Ball right now, very slightly.

Evan Metaxatos "You are Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin. What are the 5 biggest things you do this off season to transform the Hornets into a successful franchise?"

1) Re-structure and expand the front office. This isn't just replacing Mitch Kupchak with a new head of basketball operations, it's a full scale overhaul. The Hornets have one of the smallest analytics and scouting departments in the NBA which require modernization and investment. If people deserve to stay and keep their roles then they should, but links to the Jordan family is no longer a good enough reason to have a job.

2) Appoint a new Head Coach who aligns with the new front office. Additionally, the team have to increase the coaching staff salaries as a whole to be competitive with other teams. 

3) Acquire a high level 3&D Forward with size and physicality, while moving Rozier to a 6th man role. Creating a starting lineup with plus size and switchability, for the purpose of this exercise let's call it OG Anunoby who is a free agent in 2024.

Ball-Miller-Bridges-Anunoby-Williams is an interesting starting unit with four players at 6'7 or over next to Mark Williams. This approach would also move Terry Rozier to a 6th man role giving the second unit a much needed boost.

4) Acquire multiple high character veterans who can help establish a better culture and set a standard for younger players to follow. This team has been too young, soft and lacked culture setters for too long. Again, for the purpose of this exercise let's go with Josh Okogie and Kyle Anderson who can play across the 2-4 positions. 

5) Trade down or out the 2024 draft. This class is projected to be the weakest in some time, if ever there was a year to get creative and be open to a "win now" trade this would be it. 

X - @SI_Hornets and James Plowright