Charlotte Hornets: Takeaways from Summer League

After the Draft, most of the scouts saw Jones as an upside and low floor pick but this Summer League proved that his contribution could be real from the jump.

Kai Jones was a positive surprise of this Vegas event because he showed the willingness to impact the game in different ways thanks to his hustle and motor. Many experts were pointing out that his development could take a really long time before starting to produce at the NBA level but he could be some steps ahead of his growth curve.

Jones played the most minutes out of this Summer League Hornets roster and was always one of the more active players on both sides of the court. His constant motor allowed him to be always there when he was asked to rebound or on fifty-fifty balls that required hustle play to be controlled. He ended this event as the best rebounder of the team averaging 9.8 a night, and this could be a skill that is much needed by the Hornets main squad from the jump.

He was also very good at running the floor as he displayed during his Texas career. After a good defensive stop, he was not wasting any time and was always the first player down the lane ready to capitalize some easy and quick points. In these situations, he was not as clean as one would wish creating some tough looks and turnovers but what matters the most is the willingness to be ready to play this fast-paced game.

His versatility was on display as Gaitley used him at both the power forward and center position. Like we said, finding a good amount of minutes to watch him in different situations was not that easy but Jones did have quality minutes during this event. The small ball five situations are the most interesting to point out, he was not the most active screener and he still has some problems at diving to the rim like a true big man but when he does get a clean lane after the pick and roll he is unstoppable. The next video shows how unguardable he could be in these types of situations, especially with a passing partner like LaMelo Ball.

When playing power forward he showed the raw part of his package. The handle was pretty good but often he was not ready to make the right decision, and this led to three turnovers per game, a number that needs to be improved. When he finds the clear lane with the ball in his hands he is unstoppable and can reach the basket pretty easily. In these situations, he created the highlight of the Summer League as you can see in the next video.

If Jones is consistent with the ball in his hands he could be used in different sets designed by Borrego. Borrego tried his best to have both PJ Washington and Miles Bridges driving to the rim starting from the top of the arc. Here you see a 4-out offense with him trailing, as soon as he gets in a proper position to drive the lane is pretty clear for him to make a play.

The last point in which he proved to be much more ready to produce was overall defensive consistency. Jones seemed much improved from his Texas days especially in staying engaged with the flow of the opposing offense. During college, he was often caught out of position or trapped into screens and this happened much less in this Summer League. His positioning was also better during pick and roll situations where he read angles and plays more consistently than before.

The switching part was there and that was pretty expected. Jones was one inch short in getting a game-winning block on Tre Jones’ drive in the San Antonio Spurs game. Overall he did a good job at sliding his feet against quicker competition and looked in perfect shape to be this type of defender.