Former Charlotte Hornets players in the NBA playoffs
By W.B. Whitted
Mason Plumlee
Plumlee was a member of the Hornets earlier this season before he was traded. He joins Batum as a fellow former Hornet that is now on the Los Angeles Clippers. The former starting center for the Hornets is now a reserve player, behind Ivica Zubac. The fact that he’s a role player off the bench instead of a starter (he started every one of his 56 games in a Hornets uniform) indicates how far the Hornets still must go to be competitive.
As a starter this season, Plumlee averaged 12.2 points and 9.7 rebounds a game. Both would’ve been career highs for the 32-year-old center. Plumlee will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason (part of the reason the Hornets traded him was that Mark Williams and Nick Richards were the future, and they didn’t want him to leave without any compensation in return). He has not only earned another contract but his seven points and 11 rebounds he put up in the game 1 victory over the Phoenix Suns shows that he can be a contributor on a quality team. Some squad will be lucky to have him next season.