Buzz City Beat is Swarm and Sting’s one stop for the latest news and stories from around the web about the Charlotte Hornets.
Watch the entire team play “Escape the Room” while on an off-day in Portland. In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we preview the Charlotte Hornets game against the Utah Jazz while also looking at Willy Hernangomez‘s second chance and Kemba Walker‘s 40-point performance versus the Portland Trail Blazers.
Hornets @ Jazz prediction (HeroSports.com)
"The Utah Jazz (26-28) host the Charlotte Hornets (23-31) on Friday at 9:00 PM ET. This is their first meeting since January 12th 2018, a game Charlotte won by the score of 99-88 (Hornets hold Jazz to 36.4 FG pct )."
After winning three straight, Charlotte’s dropped their last two games on the road. They are now only 8-17 away from home this season. Still, the Hornets are within shouting distance of the eighth seed of the East (4.5 games back). They will need to pick up some quality wins if they want to make the playoffs.
As for Utah, they’ve won seven straight games and nine of their last 11 heading into this one. During their win streak, the Jazz has beaten the Raptors, the Warriors and the Spurs. Despite Utah having the home-court advantage, I’m going to pick the Hornets to upset them. I think Kemba Walker and company bounce back in the final game of their four-game road trip. FINAL: Hornets 98. Jazz 90.
Willy Hernangomez’s second chance to grow (YardBarker.com)
"He’s not all the way through his second year, and it’s already been a crazy ride for Hernangomez. After a season of complaining about a lack of playing time, he has to produce when on the court to prove that the request to be traded was warranted. He hasn’t earned anything yet, but in Charlotte, Hernangomez might take what should be his."
The future looked bright for Hernangomez after being named to the All-Rookie First Team last season but that flame quickly burned out when the Knicks acquired Enes Kanter. Willy found himself playing behind not only Kanter but also Kyle O’Quinn. After demanding a trade from a team with a loaded frontcourt, the Spaniard ended up with Charlotte (another team with plenty of frontcourt depth).
Although he is still relatively young at only 23-years old, there isn’t a lot of upside for Hernangomez. Best case scenario, he develops into a quality role player who can be the primary backup to either Dwight Howard or Cody Zeller. There is still plenty of time for him to grow and hopefully, he is given consistent minutes and his fair share of chances with the Hornets. Maybe Steve Clifford can re-ignite this big man’s career.
Kemba drops 40 points in loss to Portland (NumberFire.com)
"This was Walker’s fourth 40-point performance of the season and he was also excellent on defense, limiting Damian Lillard to 6-of-22 shooting from the floor. The 27-year-old guard showed why he’s more than worthy of being Kristaps Porzingis‘ replacement for the All-Star game."
Next: Rumor: Hornets interested in Mitch Kupchak
Walker put up four steals, three assists and six made three’s to go along with his 40-point explosion. The problem for Charlotte was that only three other players scored in double-figures with Frank Kaminsky being the second highest scorer at 17 points. This is starting to become a trend for the Hornets. When Kemba scores 40, they are 1-3 this season.