Charlotte Hornets 2021-22 season preview: Arnoldas Kulboka

Arnoldas Kulboka is one of the most intriguing players on the Charlotte Hornets training camp roster. Currently signed to a two-way deal, Kulboka was originally drafted by the Hornets with the 55th overall selection in the 2018 NBA Draft (the same which saw the Hornets bring in Miles Bridges and Devonte’ Graham).

Charlotte Hornets 2021-22 season preview: Arnoldas Kulboka

Kulboka received heavy minutes for a Bilbao team in the Liga ACB (regarded as the best European basketball league), averaging nine points and four rebounds on shooting splits of 44/43/80 – that isn’t bad by any means, and considering Kulboka is only 23 years old, there’s still room for growth.

The Charlotte Hornets (or really any NBA team, for that matter) can never have enough lengthy forwards that can hit long-distance shots. If Kulboka is able to continue to his 3-pointers at an effective rate, he could see playing time for the Charlotte Hornets this season.

In terms of actually getting on the floor, it may not happen much this season. Being on a two-way contract, he is going to be towards the end of the rotation (assuming he even makes the final roster) – so it may take substantial injuries to the frontcourt for him to actually see consistent time.

As a comparison, the two 2-way contracts given by the Hornets last season were to Nate Darling and Grant Riller – neither of whom saw a single game of action with more than ten minutes of playing time.

Arnoldas Kulboka is going to be a fun addition to a Hornets team that is already incredibly young. If he adds something unexpected to the roster, then general manager Mitch Kupchak will have hit on yet another one of his draft picks. If not, the Hornets can fill their two-way contract slots with someone else.

Either way, Kulboka is going to add shooting. He may not give you much else, but he doesn’t have to. Think of him as a very-much watered down Doug McDermott.