Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets scouting players in Europe, Re-picking the 2017 Draft
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 Orlando Magic are reportedly hot on Jerry Stackhouse‘s trail as they, along with the New York Knicks and Charlotte Hornets, look to interview the former NBA All-Star. (NYPost.com) In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at Charlotte’s front office scouting players in Europe, what would happen if the 2017 NBA Draft was redone and
Hornets’ front office scouting players overseas (Twitter/ @MarkPacker)
"While waiting on our flight to Rome, I bumped into the Hornets Buzz Peterson and new boss, Mitch Kupchak. Ironically, 5 minutes later Kentucky’s Kevin Knox was making the rounds. Hornets brass heading to Europe to scout."
Some of the top prospects from Europe who are draft eligible this summer include Luka Doncic, Dzanan Musa, Elie Okobo, Goga Bitazde, Arnoldas Kulboka and Kostja Mushidi. It’s unclear exactly who Kupchak and Peterson are going to look at during their trip but it is a good sign that the new general manager is getting straight to business and planning for the draft.
The Hornets have one pick in the first round that will be in the lottery and one pick in the second round. Their second-round pick will be in the 50’s and is from the Cleveland Cavaliers. Charlotte could be targeting a top prospect early in the draft or a stash player towards the end.
Re-picking the 2017 NBA Draft (BleacherReport.com)
"No. 11: Hornets: Zach Collins. It seems unlikely the Hornets see Dwight Howard in their long-term plans. They’d re-draft Collins, who’s already earning playoff minutes for his ability to stretch the floor and move defensively. Only 20 years old with 7’0″ size, a promising jumper and budding skills, Collins appears on track to becoming a solid starting NBA center."
Instead of selecting Malik Monk at No. 11, the re-draft has Charlotte taking Zach Collins, a seven-foot big man out of Gonzaga. He originally was drafted at 10th overall to the Blazers. At the time of the draft, Collins was a player rumored to be on the Hornets’ radar but it’s clear they wanted a guard as they were focused on Donovan Mitchell and Monk.
In the re-draft, Monk falls to the Atlanta Hawks at No. 19. While Zach has had a decent first year in the NBA, I think Malik has shown more flashes of potential star power. I think Charlotte had their eyes on a guard during the 2017 Draft and would’ve taken Monk, Frank Ntilikina or Luke Kennard over Collins.
G-League to raise player salary next season (NYTimes.com)
"Effective next season, players signed to G League contracts will earn $35,000 — or $7,000 per month — in addition to housing and insurance benefits over the course of the league’s five-month regular season."
This is a huge step forward for the NBA and the G-League. The players will see at least a 35% increase in their salaries. In the past, players only earned either $26,000 or $19,000. A player who is with an NBA team during training camp could earn up to as much as $50,000 in the G-League. Two-way players also saw a jump in salary as they went from $75,000 to $77,250.
Next: Hornets interested in Jerry Stackhouse as head coach
This just shows how much the NBA has grown and how much more money they are starting to put in their G-League. This should only help to continue the growth of the development league. Next season, only three teams (Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trailblazers) will be without a direct G-League affiliate with theirs expected to come in the near future.