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Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets’ Mid-Level Exception, Time to Blow it Up?

By Jerry Stephens

Dec 31, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) drives past Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) during the first half of the game at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 31, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) drives past Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) during the first half of the game at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports /
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Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s one stop for the best articles from around the internet surrounding the Charlotte Hornets.

LeBron James and the Cavs took a 3-0 lead over the Pacers while the Bucks went up 2-1 with a blowout win against the Raptors and the Grizzlies won at home versus the Spurs. In today’s playoff action, we have Chicago vs Boston, Oklahoma City vs Houston and Utah vs Los Angeles Clippers. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at how much the Charlotte Hornets‘ MLE will be worth, if it’s time to blow up the team and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is now a liability.

How Much Will Charlotte’s Mid-Level Exception be Worth? (Twitter/@Eric Pincus)

"Archived & updated Charlotte Hornets for 2017-18, team projects to be over cap, MLE of $8.4 mil"

Because the Hornets will be over the salary cap this summer with almost no space to sign free agents, their mid-level exception will be higher than teams who are under the cap. An $8.4 million exception will give Charlotte a good amount of money to lure a free agent. This will be the only way that they can sign a good player this offseason.

The team doesn’t currently have any players on their roster that were signed using the MLE. Over the past few years, Spencer Hawes and Mo Williams were both signed using the exception even though they were traded to Charlotte in the midst of their deals. With no free cap space, Rich Cho needs to make sure to use the MLE to sign a quality player.

Time to Blow Up the Hornets? (BleacherReport.com)

"If they run it back and Zeller stays healthy, there’s no reason to believe Charlotte won’t be a strong postseason threat in 2017-18."

Bleacher Report looked at each of the lottery teams and determined that it is not the time to blow up the Hornets. I would have to agree. They had a down season but Charlotte still has a solid roster and they are a few players (and staying healthy for a full season) away from getting back into the playoffs.

Plus, with the emergence of Kemba Walker, there is no way that they blow this team up now. If anything, it will force them to spend more in order to make a contender because the front office won’t want to waste their All-Star point guard’s prime years. Injuries have decimated the team over the past couple of seasons so if they remain healthy next year, a top-four seed should be achievable.

MKG is Now a Liability (iSportsWeb.com)

"He eclipsed the 20-point mark only twice this past season… He does not need to be the leading scorer and by no means should be a centerpiece of the offense, but he possesses an abundance of offensive tools that are being misused."

Next: Missing the Playoffs Could be a Good Thing

I don’t think MKG is a liability just yet. Even though he struggles on the offensive end, he still does enough to have a positive impact while on the court with his rebounding and cutting off the ball. Although, he is becoming more and more of a liability with his declining offense and inability to knock down three’s. He needs to add a consistent three-point shot going forward.

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