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Buzz City Beat: Top-10 backcourts in the NBA, Are the Charlotte Hornets a disaster?

By Jerry Stephens

NEW YORK CITY - NOVEMBER 25: Nicolas Batum #5 and Kemba Walker #15 of the Charlotte Hornets high five during the game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)
NEW YORK CITY - NOVEMBER 25: Nicolas Batum #5 and Kemba Walker #15 of the Charlotte Hornets high five during the game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2016 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Welcome to Buzz City Beat, a daily roundup of the latest and greatest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.

Kyrie Irving reportedly wants out of Cleveland and is done playing with LeBron James. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at Kemba Walker/Nicolas Batum as a top-10 backcourt in the league, if the Charlotte Hornets are a disaster and Dwayne Bacon making a good first impression.

Kemba and Nic are a top-10 backcourt (LarryBrownSports.com)

"If Monk and Walker can play together this could blossom into one of the most dynamic backcourts in the league, similar to what Portland has with Lillard and McCollum. In the meantime, however, Charlotte is rolling with Kemba and Batum, and that’s a pretty solid crew."

This article ranks Walker and Batum as the 10th best guard duo in the NBA behind the backcourts of Miami (#9), Phoenix (#8), Cleveland (#7), Portland (#6), Toronto (#5), Boston (#4), Washington (#3), Houston (#2) and Golden State (#1). Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are clearly the best backourt combo in the league but the Rockets are a close second now with James Harden and Chris Paul.

Kemba and Nic could arguably be the seventh best backcourt in the league. I think that Charlotte has a better combo than Goran Dragic/Dion Waiters, Eric Bledsoe/Devin Booker and Kyrie Irving/J.R. Smith. The Hornets have an all-star in Walker while the Heat and Suns don’t have one. As for the Cavs, Kemba and Kyrie are pretty close and Batum is arguably better than Smith.

Are the Hornets a disaster? (Youtube.com)

"“This team will win 32 games next year and Steve Clifford will not keep his job.” – Tim Doyle"

Talk about a hot take. Tim Doyle is not a fan of Charlotte’s offseason moves. He thinks that the team is a “hot mess.” After the Howard experiment failed in Los Angeles, Houston and Atlanta, Doyle doesn’t believe that it will end differently with the Hornets this season.

He also thinks pairing Malik Monk with Kemba Walker in the backcourt is a bad idea because of their size, or lack there of. For what it’s worth, I don’t think the team is a disaster. Actually, for the first time in a long time, they are actually going in the right direction after so many down years as the laughing stock of the NBA.

Dwayne Bacon makes good first impression on Charlotte (Seminoles.com)

"Less than a month after joining the Charlotte Hornets the former Florida State standout has emerged as one of pro basketball’s bright young stars."

Next: Why Treveon Graham deserves more minutes

After only five summer league games, the second round pick is already one of, if not, the Hornets’ best prospect. After Malik Monk missed the Orlando Pro Summer League due to injury, it left a void open for Bacon to make a name for himself and he did just that with impressive performances. He made a strong first impression and will look to continue that into the preseason.

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