The Charlotte Hornets should take a look at some of these interesting players to potentially fill a required roster spot.
By NBA standards, the Charlotte Hornets must have a minimum of 14 roster spots filled. They currently have 13 players signed long term and must sign a 14th one soon.
For most teams, filling the roster spot is nothing but a formality, but, for this team, it could be more than another bench warmer.
Head coach James Borrego refuses to keep a set rotation for longer than what seems like two or three weeks. Everyone on the roster has had a rotation spot and most of their roles changed drastically throughout the season.
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My point is that whoever is signed could find themselves in the rotation, deservedly or not, if JB is feeling trigger-happy with his new addition. My gut is to believe that Borrego will keep this rotation for the remainder of the season, with the exclusion of the center spot as we have seen lately.
However, the Hornets are required to fill the spot and despite flirting with guard Joe Chealy, he is not the best option in my opinion.
I have a few ideas on some guys to take a flyer on.
I really like the idea of going after recently released 25-year-old Jordan Bell. Bell is a 6′ 8″ power forward/center. Despite being undersized to play center, he has a 7-foot wingspan, so it helps a little bit. He plays with a lot of energy and is a great athlete. He would be a great pick-and-roll rim-runner for Devonte’ Graham and Malik Monk. His speed and athleticism would give the hornets a creative and skilled finishing ability off the catch. His versatility would give the Hornets a great option to go small. Picking up Jordan Bell at 25 years old could allow this year to serve as a test run and if he performs well then he could be a buy-low candidate to resign this summer.
I also like former Philadelphia 76ers’ big man Jonah Bolden. Bolden is another 6′ 8″ power-forward type, like Bell, but their skill sets are very different. Bolden would bring a little bit more floor spacing as he was a 35% three-point shooter back in the 2018-2019 season when he actually got playing time for Philly. He is a less polished player but could be a nice guy to have in case of an emergency like an injury reserve if his role on offense doesn’t pan out.
There are also other options if Charlotte decides to go with a backup guard when Devonte’ sits or needs his minutes reduced, seeing with the workload that he has carried thus far in the season; Devonte’ has played the 7th most minutes in the entire NBA up to this point.
They could go after Trey Burke, Tim Frazier, or Isaiah Briscoe as backup point guards. Although these guys probably would not get retained past this season, if they are just sitting on their couches and the Hornets want someone to allow some rest for one of their guards then there isn’t much harm in signing them.
If you couldn’t tell, my favorite option would be to go after Jordan Bell and to see how he fits because I believe that he has a chance to find a niche with this team and play well as a nice piece for the organization moving forward.
If he doesn’t work out then “oh well”, but we would have signed him at no cost or risk and at least it was worth a shot.