Charlotte Hornets: 3 Players fans should be excited to watch this pre-season

3 Players fans should be excited to watch this pre-season: Miles Bridges

The second most important development arc on the Hornets roster at this very moment is that of fourth-year forward, Miles Bridges.

Bridges has had an up and down career during his time in the NBA. He went from starting 64 of 65 games during 2019-20 to being relegated to the bench in 2020-21. Granted, this is because Charlotte signed a former All-Star in Gordon Hayward who was the Hornets’ best and most consistent player last year before he suffered an injury.

Bridges didn’t take becoming the team’s sixth man to heart, or at the very least, his play didn’t regress because of this. It was the best he’s looked since he entered the NBA. The duo between him and Ball off the bench instantly became a fan favorite, and you could tell Bridges was oozing with confidence.

The Hornets caught the injury bug late into last season and it was Bridges who had to step up and carry the team. His points per game jumped from 10.4 off the bench to 18.6 as a starter. Granted, this didn’t result in wins for Charlotte, but it truly started to look like Bridges turned the next corner in his player development.

If Bridges can carry his form from the end of last season into this one, the Hornets staff should be thrilled. Having another player who can average 15+ points in the lineup can go a long way for this young Hornets team.

A side story with Bridges is his contract situation which fellow Swarm and Sting site expert Dylan Jackson touch on in an article last week. If Bridges stays on his current path he could be looking at a very pretty payday next offseason.