Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets’ biggest offseason move, Where Batum ranks among French basketball players
Welcome to Buzz City Beat, a daily roundup of the latest and greatest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.
The team is still being linked to Jordan Hill, Terrence Jones and Willie Reed as they have the three big men on their radar. to In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at the Charlotte Hornets‘ biggest offseason move, where Nicolas Batum ranks among French basketball players and Rich Cho wins inaugural NBA Summer League ping-pong tournament.
Hornets’ biggest offseason move (BleacherReport.com)
"Cody Zeller remains one of the league’s most underrated centers, but Howard brings a new element, and it’s one that’s sorely desired by head coach Steve Clifford and his defensive proclivities."
Charlotte’ trade for Dwight Howard ranks as the ninth biggest move in the NBA this summer. If this would’ve happened a couple years ago, it would’ve been No. 1 but the big man has fallen off a bit. Still, the move is a big one for the Hornets as Howard fills two needs for the team in rebounding and interior defense.
Even though he is past his prime, the Hornets look to be a perfect fit for Howard as he looks to bounce back from a down season. This is also a big move off the court for Charlotte as Dwight is a recognizable player with name value. He will certainly help bring more of a buzz to a team that desperately needs a superstar personality.
Where Nic Batum ranks among French basketball players (Sportige.com)
"He has been playing for the French national team before Gobert and Fournier, earning a silver medal in the 2011 Eurobasket and leading France to gold in 2013. He also played with the team in the 2012 Olympics, finishing 6th."
This article ranks the Hornets’ swingman as the third best Frenchman behind only Dominique Wilkins and Boris Diaw. It is probably only a matter of time until Batum passes Diaw but he may never reach the level of Wilkins. Rudy Gobert and Evan Fournier round out the top-five. I’m surprised that Tony Parker didn’t make the list.
Nic also has two bronze medals to his name as he helped France finish third in EuroBasket 2015 and the 2014 World Cup in Spain. Among all French players to ever play in the NBA, Batum is third in point per game with 12.1. There is no doubting that he’s one of the best players to come out of France.
Rich Cho wins ping-pong tournament (Twitter/ @JaredZwerling)
".@Hornets GM Rich Cho won the annual #NBASummer league ping-pong tournament last night in Vegas. Better yet, $20,000 was raised for @StJude."
Next: Hornets need to give Bacon minutes
Who knew Rich Cho was so good at ping-pong? It turns out that he’s got mad skills when it comes to table tennis and they were on display in Las Vegas as he helped raise money for a good cause. Here’s a video of the Hornets’ general manager absolutely destroying an opponent at the tournament.