Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets’ Cap Situation, Time to Move on From MKG?
Welcome to Buzz City Beat, a daily roundup of the latest and greatest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.
Washington, Houston and Golden State all took 2-0 leads in their first round playoff series. In today’s postseason action, the Cavs take on the Pacers, the Raptors face off against the Bucks while the Spurs and Grizzlies travel to Memphis for game three. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at the Charlotte Hornets’ salary cap situation, if it’s time for the team to move on from Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker‘s season in review.
Hornets’ Salary Cap Situation (BleacherReport.com)
"Kemba Walker isn’t going anywhere, and the remaining $99.1 million on Nicolas Batum‘s pact will be tough to deal. But some combination of Marco Belinelli, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Frank Kaminsky, Jeremy Lamb and Marvin Williams has the makings of a blockbusterish offer."
Charlotte’s projected to have -$6.3 million in cap space this summer. Having no major upcoming free agents this offseason leaves the team with little wiggle room. Outside of the draft, a trade is the only way that the Hornets will be able to add a notable player to their roster as they only have a mid-level exception to spend in free agency.
A blockbusterish trade seems like it would be unlikely but Rich Cho has been known to work some deals out like the one for Jeremy Lamb and Nicolas Batum a few years ago. With that being the only way for the team to improve their roster this offseason, a trade must get done. Whether it be a small salary dump or a blockbuster, the Hornets need to get better through the trade market.
Time to Move on From MKG? (QueenCityHoops.com)
"At $13-million next year, his contract is tradeable. I think MKG will take some small steps to improve, but on a team desperate for another scorer who can spread the floor, he just doesn’t fit the need as the small-forward."
This has been an ongoing debate for some time now. The numbers speak for themselves though. Kidd-Gilchrist plays hard and with plenty of energy but that doesn’t make up for his broken jump shot and declining individual defense. Unless he can improve his offensive game, then the Hornets will have to seriously think about trading the 23-year old.
Maybe Michael can figure things out on the offensive end in the future but with their current roster, Charlotte doesn’t have enough spacing to be able to use MKG. This argument will continue until he is either traded or until he starts knocking down jumpers on a consistent basis. With MKG being so young and having potential, it is difficult to give up on him but not if he continues to struggle on the offensive end.
Kemba Walker’s Season in Review (NBA.com)
"When Walker’s 2016-17 campaign was all said and done, he found himself close to the top on a number of the franchise’s all-time leaderboards. He finished the year ranked second in career scoring (8,137 points), second in three-point field goals (792), second in made free throws (1,655), third in field goals (2,845), third in assists (2,380) and fourth in steals (606)."
Next: Four Biggest Concerns Entering Offseason
Kemba put together one of the greatest single seasons in Hornets’ history this past year. Walker carried Charlotte for most of the season with his outstanding play and as we all know, he was rewarded with his first All-Star Game nod. If he continues to put up numbers like he did in 2016-17, it is only a matter of time before the star point guard becomes the greatest player in team history.