Buzz City Beat: Charlotte Hornets to workout Ray Ona Embo
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The New York Knicks and reportedly targeting guard Trae Young with the No. 9 pick. (BleacherReport.com) In this edition of Buzz City Beat, we look at the Charlotte Hornets scheduled workout with Ray Ona Embo, Malik Monk receiving an All-Rookie Team vote and Jay Williams weighing in on the LeBron James vs Michael Jordan debate.
Hornets to workout Ray Ona Embo (Twitter/ @MarcJSpearsESPN)
"Brother of Tulane 6-5 PG Ray Ona Embo, Carl, tells @TheUndefeated that his brother has not decided if is returning to school or going to the NBA & the final decision will be made by the family. The ex-G-Leaguer adds that his brother has a workout scheduled with the Hornets Friday"
Ray Ona Embo is a native of Paris, France and has played two years at Tulane University. He put up 10.1 points per game, 3.3 assists and 3.2 rebounds while shooting 43.2% from the field, 36.5% from three and 71.9% from the free throw line during his Sophomore campaign. He isn’t considered a top prospect and could go undrafted if he stays in the draft but a good workout could land him a promise from a team.
He has good size for the point guard position at 6’5 but the expectation is that he will return to school for his Junior year. A strong season in college could help his stock for the 2019 NBA Draft. Sam Vecenie tweeted that he thinks Ray Ona Embo should go back to school because he has “legit room for growth and upside.”
All-Rookie Team voting (NBA.com)
"Other players receiving votes: Bam Adebayo, Miami 44; De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento, 34; OG Anunoby, Toronto, 25 (2); Jarrett Allen, Brooklyn, 18; Dillon Brooks, Memphis, 14 (1); Jordan Bell, Golden State, 5; Royce O’Neale, Utah, 4; Zach Collins, Portland, 3; Milos Teodosic, LA Clippers, 3 (1); Luke Kennard, Detroit, 1; Frank Mason III, Sacramento, 1; Malik Monk, Charlotte, 1; Frank Ntilikina, New York, 1; Semi Ojeleye, Boston, 1; Sindarius Thornwell, LA Clippers, 1."
Charlotte Hornets’ rookie Malik Monk received a single All-Rookie Second-Team vote this year. Although he had a strong finish to his first season in the NBA, the guard was never going to make one of the two teams as his playing time was limited throughout most of the campaign. Still, one voter saw enough out of Monk to give him the nod on his ballot.
Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons were both unanimous selection for the First-Team while Jayson Tatum, Kyle Kuzma and Lauri Markkanen rounded out the First-Team. Dennis Smith Jr., Lonzo Ball, John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Josh Jackson were named to the Second-Team. Malik was well off from making the Second-Team and he fell well short of his goal of winning Rookie of the Year.
Jay Williams thinks LeBron would dominate MJ (NewsObserver.com)
"“I’m not comparing legacies,” Williams said. “Legacies are different, LeBron James is not done yet, and Michael Jordan is undefeated in NBA Finals. You cannot tell me in a 1-on-1 game, though, that LeBron James would not dominate Mike.”"
The former Duke Blue Devil believes that LeBron would beat MJ, 7-3, in a 1-on-1 game to seven. Williams stood by his hot take and said that James has 25 pounds on Jordan and is quicker than the Bulls’ legend. Even though LeBron has the size advantage, it’s worth noting that Michael was named to an All-Defensive Team nine times and won one Defensive Player of the Year award during his playing days.
Next: CHA met with Devonte' Graham at draft combine
This is a highly debated topic and no one really knows who would come out on top in a game of 1-on-1. Still, it’s a fun subject to talk about with your friends and even though Jay made some good points, I’m not sure if LeBron would “dominate” MJ because we never saw Jordan get dominated while in his prime.