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Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets’ Bench Problem, Taking a Flyer on Larry Sanders

By Jerry Stephens

Jan 31, 2017; Portland, OR, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) and guard Kemba Walker (15) have some words with referee David Jones (36) during the third quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center. The Blazers won 115-98. Mandatory Credit: Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2017; Portland, OR, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) and guard Kemba Walker (15) have some words with referee David Jones (36) during the third quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center. The Blazers won 115-98. Mandatory Credit: Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports /
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Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s daily update for all things Charlotte Hornets and a collection of the latest and best articles from around the web.

The Charlotte Hornets are coming off of a disappointing blowout loss to the Portland Trail Blazers but they have a chance to quickly rebound as they take on the Golden State Warriors on the second night of a back to back. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at the team’s bench problems, taking a flyer on Larry Sanders, and Kemba Walker passes Larry Johnson on the Hornets’ all-time scoring list.

Hornets’ Bench Problems

“The one thing Clifford knows for sure: He can’t play five reserves together for any significant length of time and succeed this season. Hopefully general manager Rich Cho can pull off a deal before the Feb. 23 trade deadline that addresses the problem.” (CharlotteObserver.com)

Charlotte had it made last season with Jeremy Lin and Al Jefferson off the bench. This season, their bench has been a liability as “Bench Force One” is not having anywhere near the success that they did last year. There is a significant drop off when Kemba and Nicolas Batum leave the game to rest. The Hornets definitely need another scorer/ playmaker off the bench.

More from Swarm and Sting

Taking a Flyer on Larry Sanders

“The negatives with Sanders are also glaringly obvious. He left the game because of a mix of injury and mental issues. His workout with the Celtics was not great according to reports from Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports. He also may only want to come back and play with a winner, something the Hornets may not represent to him at this point.” (OldNorthBanter.com)

Larry Sanders is a fun name to throw out there with Roy Hibbert struggling and the team needing something to spark them. It’s wishful thinking to expect a player who’s been out of the league since the 2014-15 season. Although, he was productive when he did play so it isn’t out of the question that he could boost the Hornets’ bench. I just don’t see Rich Cho or Steve Clifford wanting to risk anything by taking a chance on a player like Sanders.

Kemba Reaches Third All-Time in Hornets’ Scoring

“Kemba Walker has cemented himself as one of the all time greats to ever put on a Charlotte Hornets uniform. With a jumpshot against the Portland TrailBlazers, Walker has passed Larry Johnson on the all time scoring list. Walker now sits in third behind Gerald Wallace and Dell Curry.” (AtTheHive.com)

Next: Making a Trade for Carmelo

Walker passed Larry Johnson (7,405) for third all-time on the Charlotte Hornets’ scoring list. He is now only 14 points behind Gerald Wallace for second all-time. While Kemba will pass him really soon, it will probably take a few years to pass Dell Curry (9,839) who is the all-time leading scorer for the team. There is no doubt that Kemba will eventually reach that mark at some point in his career.

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