Bringing Back the Buzz: Zo & '92-93 Hornets

[studbucket]

April 3, 2016 at Cleveland

The first spot in the East is all locked up, but the Hornets still have their sights on breaking the Bulls’ 72-10 record. With 8 losses and 53 straight wins, nobody should be doubting them, though this will be a tough week with 4 games (3 on road) in 6 days against the Cavaliers, Raptors, Knicks, and Nets. Can the Hornets win 6 of their last 7 to beat the record? It would have to start in Cleveland.

Coach J once again started Andre Roberson to limit LeBron’s effectiveness and had Kendall Gill come off of the bench as a super sub. The strategy worked, even more effectively than last time out as the Hornets got out to a 15-5 first quarter lead and never looked back.

Cleveland was once again able to limit Larry Johnson’s effectiveness but unable to contain Alonzo Mourning. After being completely abused last game, Tommy Camper switched to guard Johnson, while Kevin Love was put on Mourning. The approach helped out Tommy Camper, was he made a bigger impact offensively and played like we were used to seeing him play. However, the effort it took to guard Alonzo Mourning wore down Kevin Love, as he only finished with 9 points, 5 rebounds on 3-11 shooting (1-5 from deep) in 33 minutes of play.

In addition to Mourning’s 31 points, Avery Bradley had a good game for the Hornets, taking advantage of Kyrie Irving’s defensive lapses and ending up with 23 points and 8 rebounds.

Kyrie Irving had 31 points on 13-31 shooting and only contributed 1 assist. LeBron was able to dish the ball, tallying 11 assists but he was pedestrian elsewhere, getting 18 points and 5 rebounds, although his 6 steals were impressive.

[studbucket]

The Streak Ends

After 54 straight victories, the Hornets streak ended on a 92-96 loss in Toronto. However, it didn't stop there, as Charlotte preceded to lose 3 straight games, including games to the Knicks and Nets.

Chicago's record is no longer within reach, but the Hornets can look forward to cracking the 70 win mark, and possibly facing up against Muggsy Bogues and the Celtics in round 1.

[trekfan]

Re: The Streak Ends

After 54 straight victories, the Hornets streak ended on a 92-96 loss in Toronto. However, it didn't stop there, as Charlotte preceded to lose 3 straight games, including games to the Knicks and Nets.

Chicago's record is no longer within reach, but the Hornets can look forward to cracking the 70 win mark, and possibly facing up against Muggsy Bogues and the Celtics in round 1.

The Raptors, Knicks, and Nets?! WHY??!

*cue fan overreaction and hot take*

Man, if they don't win the title, this team is a JOKE.

*/end overreaction*

Tough way to end the streak, but with the pressure off now, the Hornets should be able to refocus and bunker down for the playoffs, where things get much harder.

[studbucket]

Re: The Streak Ends

The Raptors, Knicks, and Nets?! WHY??!

*cue fan overreaction and hot take*

Man, if they don't win the title, this team is a JOKE.

*/end overreaction*

Tough way to end the streak, but with the pressure off now, the Hornets should be able to refocus and bunker down for the playoffs, where things get much harder.

Yeah, I look forward to the playoffs, although round 1 looks like a cakewalk. We get the Celtics, and well...more on them in my next post. You may remember that they are playing Isaiah Thomas and Muggsy Bogues as their backcourt, for the shortest tandem of all time.

[studbucket]

April 10, 2016 at Boston

The Hornets may have lost out on their chance to break the Bulls' record of 72 wins, but they still had something to play for. They could get their 70th win tonight and get some confidence back. Larry Johnson hasn't been scoring at his usual clip recently and Alonzo Mourning dipped below 20 PPG for the season.

Coach J wanted to take it to his prospective round 1 opponents and get Johnson back on track. The game also had extra meaning for Avery Bradley and Kelly Olynyk as they looked to prove to their old team that they should have been kept.

The game started out quite close and pretty rough for the Hornets. Alonzo Mourning had picked up 2 fouls in the first 2 minutes and had to be subbed out. With Mourning out, Tyler Zeller started cleaning the offensive glass and getting 2nd chance buckets for the Celtics. They gained some confidence, Avery Bradley threw a few balls into the stands and David Lee and Isaiah Thomas were hitting their shots.

However, late in the first quarter the Hornets overshadowed backcourt took control. Sessions, Bradley, and Curry combined to help the Hornets pull away the last 2 minutes and finish the first quarter with a surprising 11 point lead (given how most of the quarter had played out).

The game held relatively steady until the 3rd quarter when Larry Johnson and Avery Bradley took over the game for good and led the Hornets to an easy victory.

Mourning did end up logging 22 minutes, but only tallied 6 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks.

[studbucket]

2015-2016 Regular Season Summary

The 2015-16 regular season has come to an end, and the biggest stories are the possible beginning of one dynasty, and the likely end another. The San Antonio finished a woeful 33-49, third worst in the West, and missed the playoffs for the first time since Tim Duncan was drafted. Hit hard by injuries, the team threw away what may be Tim Duncan’s final season, despite Duncan managing to NBA All-Defensive 2^nd Team. In the other conference, fans saw the Charlotte Hornets come from seemingly nowhere to ride a trio of rising stars to a 71-win season. Is this the start of a multi-year stretch of dominance, or will the young Hornets fall flat in the playoffs or fall apart due to egos and contract issues?

Western Conference

Partway through the season, it looked like the West may have been turned on its head. However, as the season has finished, the West looks pretty much as expected, not counting the Spurs. The biggest story is probably the fall of the Suns and Blazers following their Tyson Chandler trade. The Suns went from the top of the West to the 7 seed, and injuries to Lillard, Plumlee, and Kaman meant that Chandler could do nothing to help the Trailblazers from falling out of the playoffs and finishing 6 games under .500.
However, as a silver lining, if the Blazers can stay healthy, they have Lillard, a much improved Plumlee, and a lottery pick to build on for the future.

Fans in Minnesota are excited to see the young Timberwolves in the playoffs, though they will likely just be a roadbump on the Rockets path to the next round. Both the Warriors and Thunder under-achieved this year, and their reward is a first-round 4 vs 5 matchup and must-see TV.

Eastern Conference

The top of the East was full of good basketball this season, which resulted in a boring race for the 1 and 2 seeds. However, below that, the 3-6 seeds were all separated by 4 games and fought hard for the ability to delay their date with the Hornets until the conference finals. Below that, 5 teams were within 4 games for the 7^th and 8 spots.

The Knicks may have ended up with the 7^th seed, but could be dangerous in the playoffs if they manage to get healthy enough to have ‘Melo, Porzingis, and Fletcher all playing.

Monthly Awards

LeBron James finished and started with the player of the month awards, as did Kevin Durant. Durant managed a 3^rd award on the season and led the league in scoring, but that may not be enough to win MVP. As the season closes, the media is giving a slight edge to LeBron over Larry Johnson, but we’ll see how the votes tally up.

For rookie of the month, you could see all the rookies fade a bit down the stretch, but Mourning was able to rebound and get the Eastern conference’s award in April, and Mudiay stepped up and has been the sole bright spot for a terrible Nuggets team, stealing the last month’s award from the fantastic D’Angelo Russell.

Hornets

There were no major changes in the Hornets production as the season went along. Mourning and LJ still averaged double-doubles, the rest of the starters were in double-digit scoring, and distribution of the ball was evenly split amongst Johnson, Gill, Sessions, Curry, and Gill. Mourning’s points did dip below 20 as the season wore on, but he stayed above 11 rebounds a game and managed 2 and a half blocks per game, deterring other teams from entering the paint.

[trekfan]

Re: 2015-2016 Regular Season Summary

Hornets vs. Celtics? Man, got some grudges to settle in this game for both sides. Should be a tough series.

[studbucket]

Re: 2015-2016 Regular Season Summary

Hornets vs. Celtics? Man, got some grudges to settle in this game for both sides. Should be a tough series.

Definitely do. Unfortunately for Boston, Bradley and Olynyk have been better than Bogues this year and the Celtics have struggled to deal with Charlotte's height. We'll see what kind of adjustments they make in the playoffs. Playoff preview forthcoming, after my awards summary.

[studbucket]

2015-16 Award Summary

MVP

In a very close race, the voters chose Larry Johnson over LeBron James for the MVP award. It’s a tremendous achievement for the 2^nd year player. Johnson won the award despite his stats being less gaudy than those of James or Durant, but voters likely remembered Johnson stepping it up in games against LeBron, and leading the Hornets to a 3-1 series edge for the season.

Rookie of the Year

From zero to hero. Joey Fletcher was passed on by every NBA team, and is now the rookie of the year and arguably one of the best point guards in the league. He did slow down as the season went on, due to fatigue and an injury to Carmelo Anthony, so he only finished with 5 triple-doubles. However, his 12.8 ppg, 7.3 rpg, and 8.5 apg are nothing to sneeze at, and many expect his 3 point shot to improve from the 36.4% he shot this season. The big question: can the Knicks retain him since he was just on a 1-year contract as an undrafted player. He appreciates the opportunity he received in New York, but now that he’s proved himself, he knows there are better organizations out there. We’ll see what kind of money the Knicks throw his way.

Defensive Player of the Year

DeAndre Jordan pretty much led projections for this award wire-to-wire. He absolutely owned the post and tallied an unreal 17 rebounds and 3.6 blocks per game.

6^th Man of the Year

Phoenix had a surprising year, and Brandon Knight’s offense off of the bench was a big part of that. Coming in for crucial minutes and regularly racking up points and assists, he’s helped Phoenix be a dangerous team in the playoffs, where we know that bench guards can ignite a run (see: Goran Dragic and JJ Berea).

Most Improved Player

Mason Plumlee was a revelation for the Trailblazers this year, and his injury was a major reason for the team fading down the stretch. He and Lillard will be back and healthy for the ‘Blazers next year, and with a Western conference that was a little bit up and down and may see several great players shuffled around in the offseason, they could be a great spot to grab a top 4 seed.

All NBA Teams

In the most shocking award news of the offseason, LeBron James made none of the All-NBA teams. It’s understandable that he maybe didn’t make the first team, though many felt he should have been there instead of Durant, or at least they could have gone with a smallball lineup and bumped Gasol. Instead, he made none of the 3 All-NBA teams and have left everyone scratching their heads. Reports out of Cleveland are that LeBron is livid and wants to prove everyone wrong in the playoffs. We may not have seen LeBron this made since his second season in Miami.

Pau Gasol, Al Horford, and Goran Dragic round out the list of nice surprises on the All-NBA teams, rewarding 3 players who played above expectations this year.

All Defensive Teams

LeBron did show up on the All-Defensive 1^st team, along with surprise PG Eric Bledsoe. Tim Duncan was a nice story, with the old vet managing to make 2^nd team.

All Rookie Teams

If you thought the voters lost their minds with the All NBA teams, it was confirmed with the All Rookie teams.

3 center and 2 guards on the 1^st team!? I get that these are fantasy teams, but I can’t even imagine rolling out a lineup with Fletcher at the 2, Okafor at the 3, Mourning at the 4, and Towns at the 5. Maybe…just maybe that would have worked in the early 80s, but it wasn’t going to work today. Then the voters over-compensated by giving the 2^nd team 3 guards and 2 forwards, although the team is basically just a team full of shooters. Award craziness aside, the right 10 players were recognized…just in an insane manner.

[studbucket]

2015-16 Playoff Preview

The playoffs are about ready to kick off, and we have six pretty compelling matchups in round 1. Here they are in order from most-to-least compelling.

(4) Warriors vs (5) Thunder
Arguably the two best teams in the West find themselves matching up in the first round, meaning extreme disappointment for one of these 2 fanbases. Harrison Barnes is out for another 2-4 weeks, and his missing wing play will make things harder for the Warriors. The Thunder continue to be a 2-man team, with the both Westbrook and Durant having fantastic seasons. The Warriors still play as a team, but their stars didn’t shine as brightly this year. Who comes out of this series? I’m giving it to the home team.

Prediction: Warriors 3-2.

(3) Pelicans vs (6) Clippers
The most versatile big man in the league brings his MASH unit (Holiday out for season, Evans out for another 2 weeks) to face the Clippers. Los Angeles hasn’t been great this season, but got production from unexpected places, with Paul Pierce and JJ Redick being key contributors and DeAndre Jordan being a monster defensively. If Ryan Anderson can get healthy for the series, there’s a chance that the Pelicans could stretch out the floor and negate some of the advantages that the Clippers have. Unfortunately, the injuries will likely be too much for New Orleans.

Prediction: Clippers 3-1.

(2) Cavaliers vs (7) Knicks
An angry LeBron James and his underachieving teammates against an overachieving Knicks team led by Carmelo and 2 rookies. It shouldn’t be compelling, but it is. Will the Knicks regret trading Lopez? Or can they take advantage of the Cavs and their over-reliance on big men? Can Joey Fletcher show up in the playoffs, or will he be no match for Kyrie Irving? And can Carmelo finally be part of a playoff winner? Or will he just be in LeBron’s shadow once again? Sadly for the Knicks, I don’t think they can cut it, though they will keep it close.

Prediction: Cavaliers 3-1.

(2) Grizzles vs (7) Suns
In the 2^nd of our interesting 2 vs 7 matchups, we’ll see if an up-and-down but overachieving Suns team can match up with the consistent Grizzlies. Gasol and Randolph were once again a dominant front court, but Rudy Gay led the team in scoring and also grabbed 6 boards and 5 assists per game. With the Suns strength being their back court, he may find it hard to have the impact he normally has, but it’s unlikely that Markieff Morris or Alex Len will be able to effectively slow down Gasol and Randolph. If the Suns want to win this series, they may have to run up the score, trying to play a fast-paced game and hitting their 3s.

Prediction: Grizzlies 3-1.

(3) Hawks vs (6) Pacers
The Hawks weren’t quite as great as last season, but their team play continued and they received a small boost from rookie sharpshooter Hope Law. Unfortunately, Law is out for the season with a broken ankle. The Hawks will need to rely a bit more on Al Horford and hope that Kyle Korver and Dennis Schroeder can make up for some of the lost production. The Pacers got a great season from Paul George and a good enough performance from his supporting cast of Monta Ellis and George Hill to make an impact this season. Even with 6^th man Rodney Stuckey injured, The Pacers look ripe for an upset here.

Prediction: Pacers 3-2.

(4) Heat vs (5) Bulls
In what could have been one of the most compelling matchups of the playoffs, fan can instead look forward to some sloppy basketball as 3 of the series 5 biggest stars are injured. It’s still worth tuning in for Gasol vs Bosh, but with Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade all out for at least the next month, neither team can expect to go very far in these playoffs.

Prediction: Heat 3-2.

(1) Hornets vs (8) Celtics
The Hornets have had the Celtics number all season, and we expect that to continue as Avery Bradley continues his revenge tour over his old team. Muggsy Bogues would love to show Coach J that he should have kept him around, but he’s done nothing this season to make the Hornets second guess the trade, as Bradley’s defense, shooting, and height advantage have been key.

Prediction: Hornets 3-0.

(1) Rockets vs (8) Timberwolves
The Rockets may play ugly, but they have managed to get the first seed in the playoffs and look remarkably deep compared to expectations. The young Timberwolves have been exciting this year, but Karl-Anthony Towns is hurt and, if he plays, will be limited. Pekovic is also out for the ‘Wolves, as is Shabazz Muhammad, leaving them without 3 of their top 5 scorers. That’s a big problem against an offensive juggernaut like Houston.

Prediction: Rockets 3-0.

[studbucket]

2016 Playoffs Round 1: Game 1 vs Celtics

It was the very first playoff game for Larry Johnson, Alonzo Mourning, Kendall Gill, and Coach J. Of the Hornets starters, Dell Curry only had 4 games under his belt, and Avery Bradly was the playoff veteran in the group with 20 playoff appearances. Would there be nerves? Or was youthful ignorance enough to overcome any nerves that may be coming up?

The Hornets came in supremely confident, and who could blame them? However, Coach Stevens and the Celtics weren’t going down without a fight. In a surprise move, Muggsy Bogues was sent to the bench and 6’6” James Young was started at the 2-guard.

Early On, it didn’t look like it would make a difference. Kendall Gill and Dell Curry carried the Hornets to a 9-2 opening lead and the game was well on its way to being a blowout. However, then things changed. Isaiah Thomas took over the first quarter and had 15 of the Celtics first 22 points and the Celtics had a 32-25 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Alonzo Mourning had to be benched after 2 minutes after getting into foul trouble again and Larry Johnson didn’t have a single point in the first quarter. Things were looking rough for the Hornets.

Motivated and wanting to get the team back into the game, Larry Johnson stepped up in the 2^nd quarter and partnered with Kendall Gill and Avery Bradley to get the Hornets back into the game. Bradley played stellar defense on Thomas, limiting his output for the next 3 quarters to the equivalent of his 1^st quarter production.

However, Mourning picked up his 3^rd and 4^th fouls and Charlotte trailed by 3 at halftime, 60-57.

The Hornets played much better basketball after half, and built up a 14 point lead with 6 minutes left in the 4^th. Kendall Gill scored 8 straight points to help Charlotte pull away and it looked like it was going to be another comfortable victory. Then the Hornets went cold.

Boston went on a 20-5 run and found themselves up by 1 with a minute left. Johnson and the Hornets were on the verge of choking this game away. With 20 seconds left and the Hornets down by 1, Dell Curry missed a wide open 2 and the Celtics converted both free throws to take a 3 point lead.

With 6.6 seconds left, Larry Johnson took a tough shot from the low block, made it, and was fouled! Johnson converted the and-1 and the game was tied. David Lee promptly threw the inbounds pass out of bounds, but Charlotte couldn’t capitalize as Gill fumbled the ball away and couldn’t get a shot off.

In overtime, both teams decided to start building some brick houses until Charlotte went back to the well: Gill and Curry helped the Hornets pull away and get a 7-point victory despite Mourning getting 2 fouls in overtime and fouling out.

Outside of Gill’s 31 and Curry’s 15 and 11 night, there may have been nothing that helped the Hornets more than Brad Stevens deciding to sit Isaiah Thomas the entire overtime period. The decision was baffling and clearly cost the Celtics the win, as Thomas was carrying the Celtics and finished with 30 points, 11 assists, and 5 rebounds.

While the rest of the series openers in these playoffs were blowouts, this one opened up with a fantastic game. The Hornets will view this as a much tougher contest than it should have been, but Kendall Gill stepped up when nobody else could and willed the Hornets to victory.

[trekfan]

Re: 2016 Playoffs Round 1: Game 1 vs Celtics

Boston was SO CLOSE. Got it to OT against a much better squad. Got to be impressed with their play, but Stevens benching IT is a major head-scratcher. I doubt Stevens loses his job because of it (he's a young coach in the NBA and this is only his second ever playoff series) but that's definitely a black mark on his record.

[studbucket]

Re: 2016 Playoffs Round 1: Game 1 vs Celtics

Boston was SO CLOSE. Got it to OT against a much better squad. Got to be impressed with their play, but Stevens benching IT is a major head-scratcher. I doubt Stevens loses his job because of it (he's a young coach in the NBA and this is only his second ever playoff series) but that's definitely a black mark on his record.

Yeah, I was shocked. I kept looking up at the Celtics bench, waiting for him to get subbed in. It was even worse because they kept Bogues and his -22 +/- in the game. I was surprised after Stevens did such a good job mixing up his starting lineup and rotation.

The playoffs have been full of blowouts, but the Celtics have managed to keep most of the games close. However, this game 1 loss may have cost them the series. Some real shockers out West though. We're seeing several sweeps and lopsided series.

*Also, I am playing 7 game series, not 5. So my predictions were slightly wrong

[studbucket]

2016 Playoffs Round 1: Game 4 at Boston

The first round of the playoffs have largely been a disappointment for neutral observers. Outside of the first Celtics-Hornets game, there have been very few close contests, and every series looks like it will be wrapped up in 5 games, maybe 6 and there will probably be 4 sweeps.

Games 2 & 3

The Hornets-Celtics series has featured close games, but is still sitting at 3-0 as the Hornets look to bring out the brooms in the garden. In game 2, Boston had it within 5 points headed into the 4^th, but the Hornets turned it on in the 4^th, cruising to a 14 point victory. The main talking point was once again Brad Stevens’ coaching decisions. A game after starting James Young (to great effect) the shooting guard was a healthy scratch in game 2. Isaiah Thomas once again led the Celtics, but was very inefficient, getting his 21 points on 6-23 shooting and only getting 5 assists. For Charlotte, it was the usual suspects as Johnson, Gill, and Mourning combined for 66 points and 37 rebounds.

The series headed back to Boston and the Celtics came out motivated. Some great defense and efficient offense got them a 10 point lead at half, holding the Hornets to only 46 points. However, things didn’t just break down in the 3^rd quarter, the wheels to the Celtics bus fell off and their driver (presumably Coach Stevens) drove them straight off the overpass. The team never recovered as the Hornets outscored them 37-14 in the quarter and went on to win by 12. Strangely, James Young saw 30 minutes this game, and managed to go 1-10 from the field. Muggsy Bogues continued to struggle against his old team, getting a -22 +/-. In addition to a steady performance from Larry Johnson, the Hornets had an unlikely hero in Ramon Sessions, who went 3-5 from three en route to 13 points and 6 assists off of the bench.

With Mourning being largely ineffective in game 3 and surprisingly having a tough time with the Celtics frontcourt, Coach J wanted to see Alonzo Mourning get back into a good flow. “The series isn’t over yet, but we have a comfortable lead and have shown a great amount of mental toughness in all 3 games. I’d love to see us come out, make this an easier game, and see ‘Zo really establish himself and gain some confidence. We’re going to need him in the next round, because Gasol, Bosh, Noah, and Whiteside aren’t slouches. With the backcourts so banged up for the Bulls and Heat, whomever we face is going to need to establish the post game, and it’s incumbent on Alonzo to stop them and force them to spend energy playing defense.”

Game 4

In this game, we saw a difference in coaching quality again. Coach J and Brad Stevens may have similar pedigrees, but Stevens and the Celtics were outclassed again. Coach J wanted to take Isaiah Thomas out of the game and put the burden on the other Celtics. He did this by doubling him every time he stepped inside the 3 point line, and the other Celtics struggled to step up.

The Celtics started Young at shooting guard again, but he picked up 2 fouls in 2 minutes and the Celtics were forced to bring in Muggsy Bogues once again. On Muggsy’s first possession, Mourning got switched into guarding him and the 5’3 guard tried to take on his 6’10” former teammate and was promptly rejected. At the end of the first quarter, the game was 35-20 and most of the Celtics offense had come the same way Larry Johnson’s had: offensive rebounds.

The rest of the game played out in a similar manner. Boston never got any closer and they continued to struggle. Only 1 Celtic (Jared Sullinger) managed to score more than 13 points or grab more than 7 rebounds. However, many of those points came as a result of doubling Isaiah Thomas and leaving Sullinger open, meaning it was a tradeoff that Coach J was willing to take.

On the Hornets side, Mourning had a nice game with 23 points and 12 boards in only 22 minutes and Larry Johnson had a solid 17 and 7 in 26 minutes. However, it was Kendall Gill who shined tonight.

Maybe it’s the playoffs, maybe it’s the Celtics, or maybe it’s the extra attention that Johnson and Mourning seem to be getting, but Kendall Gill has found a new offensive gear. He went 20-25 in this game with a career high 43 points and was clearly having a blast. Hitting a three, throwing down tomahawks and a reverse alley-oop were just some of the examples of the confidence that Gill was playing with.

[trekfan]

Re: 2016 Playoffs Round 1: Game 4 at Boston

Close out game time. I predict a pick performance from Larry J. to send the Celtics home for the season.

DO IT.