Charlotte Hornets: The Blame Directed at Steve Clifford is Misplaced
With a lot of the blame for the Charlotte Hornets’ disappointing season falling on Steve Clifford, there should be more of an onus on the players.
One thing that isn’t debatable is that the Charlotte Hornets have underperformed this season. The team hasn’t lived up to expectations and their playoff hopes are essentially finished. With everyone looking for someone to blame, the easy target has seemingly been head coach Steve Clifford.
While there is enough blame to go around, the majority of it shouldn’t fall on Coach Clifford. Despite Rich Cho and Michael Jordan putting together a roster with less talent and production than last season’s squad, Steve has still found a way to put the Hornets in a position to win. The results just haven’t been there this year.
Even though blame could be handed out to anyone, Clifford has put a lot of it on himself. After the team’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, Charlotte’s head coach had some interesting things to say. And while he did point out his downfalls this season, he also called out the players for their poor play.
"Clifford says idea #NBA is player’s league is wrong. Said so many in-game adjustments. It’s on him to get team playing well. Steve Clifford says needs to get team to buy in, team not doing it. “Coach’s job is connecting. This team is not connecting.” #Hornets head coach Steve Clifford says team has guys “that think they’re playing well and there not.”"
Clifford has arguably been his harshest critic but I have noticed plenty of fans taking out their frustrations on him as well. While underperforming player shave also been the victims of criticism, recent rumors are starting to swirl about Steve’s job security going forward. Many are claiming that he should/might be on the hot seat.
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The disapproval, while called for, should mostly be put on the players. Coach Clifford has done a great job of coaching his team by putting them in the right spots to win games. That can be illustrated by the team’s poor play in close games.
Last season, Charlotte played a lot of close games but they were able to pull out wins more often than not. They were 22-20 in clutch games (Under five minutes in the game and within five points) last year compared to only 17-26 this season which is tied for the most losses in the NBA in these types of games. (NBA.com)
The Hornets’ horrendous defense late in games has been the main reason for their poor play in the clutch. They have the second worst defense (125.0 defensive rating) in clutch situations this season. (NBA.com) Only the Los Angeles Lakers have a worse mark. Compare that to Charlotte’s 98.1 defensive rating in the same games last year (NBA.com) which was the fourth best clip in the NBA.
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If you ask me, that is on the players. Steve Clifford puts them in positions to win games but the players haven’t been able to get the job done and close out close matches. The head coach can’t be on the court and defend. So while he does deserve some blame, a lot should fall on underperforming players.