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Buzz City Beat: Now or Never for the Charlotte Hornets, Kaminsky Gets a Potato

By Jerry Stephens

Mar 15, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Charlotte Hornets head coach Steve Clifford calls a play from the sideline in the second half of the game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana Pacers beat the Charlotte Hornets 98-77.Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Charlotte Hornets head coach Steve Clifford calls a play from the sideline in the second half of the game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana Pacers beat the Charlotte Hornets 98-77.Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s daily dose of the latest and best articles from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.

After a three-game losing streak, the Charlotte Hornets have an off day before returning to action to take on the Washington Wizards. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at the team’s dwindling playoff odds, Frank Kaminsky getting a personalized potato and NBA power rankings.

Now or Never for the Hornets

"How this works: This forecast is based on 50,000 simulations of the season and accounts for team fatigue, travel distance to games, and home courts with higher altitudes. Elo ratings are a measure of team strength based on head-to-head results and quality of opponent, while our CARMELO projections estimate a player’s future performance based on the trajectory of other, similar NBA players."

With only 14 games left in the regular season for the Hornets, their odds to make the playoffs are down to only 2%. Those are the lowest odds out of any team that isn’t below 1% and are already essentially eliminated. So while the chances for Charlotte don’t look great, they could still make a postseason push by winning just about every single game remaining on their schedule.

That is why it is now or never for the team. While most think it is best to tank, Kemba Walker and company still believe that they can and want to make the playoffs this year. It’s an outside shot at this point but there is still the slimmest of chances.

Frank Kaminsky Gets a Personalized Potato

"What could possibly be a better way to celebrate this time in the game than to send a gift to some of the game’s best players? Perhaps…a potato? That’s exactly what’s going on. Players around the NBA are receiving potatoes in the mail from someone. These aren’t just run-of-the-mill, everyday spuds, though—they’re personalized potatoes. Yes, this is a thing."

Something pretty crazy is happening around the league. A select few NBA players are getting personalized potatoes. Kaminsky joins Dirk Nowitzki, C.J. Miles and Hassan Whiteside as players who have gotten a potato. There is no connection between any of these players but it is pretty cool that Frank got one.

Charlotte Moves Down One Spot in Power Rankings

"Remember when the Charlotte Hornets played decent defense? It wasn’t that long ago, actually. Through Jan. 1, they were sixth in the league with a 103.1 defensive rating. Since then, they’ve ranked 14th. And if you slice the data thinner, beginning with games Feb. 1, they’re 18th."

Next: What O'Bryant Can Bring to the Hornets

With the Hornets’ current form, it is a bit of a surprise that they aren’t ranked lower than 21st. A number of teams that have recently beat Charlotte are still below them in the power rankings. That being said, a bottom-10 ranking still isn’t great for a team with playoff aspirations.

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