Charlotte Hornets: Steve Clifford Calls Out Poor Bench Play

Kemba Walker has carried the Charlotte Hornets while the second unit’s play hasn’t quite been up to par and Steve Clifford isn’t happy about it.

After the Charlotte Hornets blew yet another fourth quarter lead against the Miami Heat in their most recent outing, head coach Steve Clifford had some choice words about his team. Mainly for the bench as he felt that the second unit didn’t help the starters enough. This has largely been an issue for most of the season as Kemba Walker is the only consistent scorer.

In the match against the Heat, the Hornets’ second unit was outscored 40-18 by Miami’s bench. While Charlotte’s bench ranks 13th in the NBA in scoring with 35.9 points per game, they haven’t stepped up to the plate as of late when the team has needed it most. It’s also worth noting that their bench is depleted with Ramon Sessions, Frank Kaminsky and Miles Plumlee all out injured.

That’s three of their regular backups missing an extended period of time with injuries. The worst part about the injuries is that the Hornets don’t have many serviceable backups. Brian Roberts has underperformed and even when Plumlee and Sessions were healthy, they were underachieving as well. With the most recent loss to Miami, it seems as if Clifford is fed up with the second unit’s poor play.

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We’ve gotten used to seeing Kemba take over games night in and night out but his play, no matter how stellar, isn’t always going to lead to victories. With Charlotte attempting to battle for a playoff spot late in the season, the bench unit has completely fallen off. They have offered almost no help to Walker and the rest of the starters.

In the Hornets last 10 games, the second unit is only averaging 23.5 points per game which are second worst in the league during that time. (HoopsStats.com) When Steve Clifford and the team needed players off the bench to step up the most, they have ultimately failed. Aside from a few surprise performances from Johnny O’Bryant or Jeremy Lamb, the rest of the bench hasn’t been nearly consistent enough.

So how do they fix this problem? If you ask me, they should give Briante Weber a chance because Brian Roberts has been one of the most unproductive players off the bench. There isn’t much else Coach Clifford can do to try and shake things up with the second unit but it is clear that the current strategy isn’t working.

Here’s the post game interview with Steve Clifford:

The most telling line from Clifford: “Can’t be five guys trying, three guys not trying.”

While every player does try, it has seemed like the Hornets’ players, mainly the second unit players, have had way too many defensive lapses this season. The drop off from the starters to the bench, or when Kemba leaves the court, has been dramatic this year. Charlotte not only struggles to defend but they also struggle to score points and create open shots.

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It will be interesting to see if Clifford changes things up going forward or if he tries to ride things out with the current rotation. It’s clear that a chance is needed but with limited options and Steve being so stubborn, it is going to be hard to accomplish.

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