Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s one stop for the latest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.
The Charlotte Hornets have assigned rookie Dwayne Bacon to the Greensboro Swarm. (NBA.com) With the team going on a West Coast road-trip, there’s a good chance that the second-round pick could stay with the G-League affiliate until they return. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at where Charlotte sits in the Week 10 power rankings, a trade idea involving Nicolas Batum and where the Hornets’ “City” edition uniforms rank among other NBA teams.
Charlotte climbs in Week 10 power rankings (USAToday.com)
"The Hornets average 27.9 free throw attempts per game, good for first in the NBA, but make just 73.2% of those attempts, which ranks 26th."
The Hornets moved up two spots and came in at No. 21 after being ranked at No. 23 last week. That puts them just ahead of the Brooklyn Nets (22) and one spot behind the Los Angeles Clippers (20). At 12-22, they are tied with four other teams for the sixth worst record in the league.
Charlotte went 2-2 during the week with wins over the New York Knicks and the Milwaukee Bucks. They have a tough stretch of games before the New Year and unless they can pull off an upset or two on their West Coast road-trip, they will likely fall back down in the rankings for Week 11. We’ll have to wait and see if the Hornets can crack the top-20 as they are just on the outside looking in.
Nicolas Batum trade idea (BleacherReport.com)
"Charlotte Hornets Receive: SG/SF Wayne Ellington, SG/SF Dion Waiters, SF/PF Justise Winslow, 2022 second-round pick. Miami Heat Receive: SG/SF Nicolas Batum"
This trade would allow Charlotte to move Nic Batum’s massive contract (about $24.7 million through 2020-21) while taking on Ellington’s expiring deal, Waiter’s four-year contract and Winslow who is still on his rookie deal. Eating Dion’s roughly $11.2 million a year deal is a small price to pay for offloading Nicolas.
I think this would be an ideal move for the Hornets but I don’t see why the Miami Heat would be willing to make the trade. Unless they believe that Batum can bounce back in a big way, it doesn’t make much sense for them. If anyone can pull off a deal like this, Rich Cho can and I think Charlotte would make this trade in a heartbeat if given the chance. Not only does it create a bit of cap space but it also gives the Hornets some more young talent which they desperately need.
Hornets have the best “City” edition uniform (FTW.USAToday.com)
"The Hornets have the best color scheme in the NBA, I don’t care what anyone says. And Nike makes perfect use of it here. These also get points for the “Buzz City” wordmark."
Next: Malik Monk scores 25 points in G-League debut
Out of all the 26 NBA teams who released their “City” edition uniforms on December 27th, Charlotte’s were ranked as the best. The Atlanta Hawks were second while the Portland Trail Blazers, the Memphis Grizzlies and the Los Angeles Clippers rounded out the top-five. Looking at all of the Hornets’ five different uniforms, it may be safe to say that they have the best collection of jerseys in the entire league.