Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s one stop for the latest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.
Big man Willie Hernangomez has reportedly requested a trade from the New York Knicks before the February 8th NBA trade deadline. (Shams) In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we preview the Charlotte Hornets‘ game against the Denver Nuggets while also looking at why trade rumors are surrounding Kemba Walker and the point guard breaking yet another franchise record.
Hornets @ Nuggets prediction (RealSport101.com)
"This will be a close one, but at home Denver should just be able to do enough to stop the rampaging Hornets. They’ll run out victorious in a game that comes down to the final seconds, winning 113-110."
This will be a really tough game for Charlotte. They are on the second night of a back to back on the road and they will be playing at the highest altitude in the NBA. The Nuggets have a clear home-court advantage as they are used to the elevation. As for the Hornets, they won’t have a lot of time to adjust to the altitude which could be a problem during the game as they will most likely get tired faster.
Charlotte’s has momentum heading into this game as they are winners of their last three games but they face a tough challenge in Denver who are 21-7 at home which is one of the best marks in the league this season. While the article above picks the Nuggets, I think the Hornets do just enough to get the W in this one. Prediction: Hornets 105. Nuggets 100.
Why Kemba is being named in trade rumors (TheRinger.com)
"Execs and agents I spoke to believe it explains the rise in trade chatter involving stars. Teams are more regularly gauging the value of their own centerpieces, and other teams are making more calls knowing they’ll listen. It’s why we’re hearing reports about Aaron Gordon and Kemba Walker being available."
Kevin O’Connor lists the concern regarding max deals as the reason why star players are more frequently being named in trade rumors. For the Hornets, I think it’s not only that but also them wanting to off-load some of their bad contracts and the only way to do that would be to trade Walker. I don’t think Charlotte has a problem with committing big money to Kemba long-term but with them getting dangerously close to the luxury tax, they needed to get creative in shedding some large salaries.
As for other teams, it seems like they are hesitant to give their fringe-star players max money like the Orlando Magic with Aaron Gordon. He isn’t an all-star but will likely command a max offer sheet during free agency and teams in that position will have to make some tough decisions this summer. For the Hornets, they seem committed to keeping Walker, the real question is, does he want to sign an extension with a struggling team? That remains to be seen.
Walker becomes Charlotte’s all-time leader in three’s made (RotoWorld.com)
"Kemba Walker became the Hornets’ all-time leader in made 3-pointers. Kemba has made 930 triples in his career, which moves him past Dell Curry for the franchise lead."
Next: Rumor: Bucks interested in trading for Malik Monk
It’s pretty crazy to think that the point guard who couldn’t shoot from deep coming out of college is now the Hornets’ leader in three-point field goals made. It took Kemba only 493 games to reach this feat compared to 701 for Dell Curry. The next franchise record in sight for Walker is to become Charlotte’s all-time leading scorer. He needs to average just 19 points per game for the rest of the season to break another one of Dell’s records (9,839 points).