Hornets Sign Isaiah Whaley, Jalen Crutcher, Jaylen Sims, Anthony Duruji

The Hornets have signed forward Isaiah Whaley, guard Jalen Crutcher, shooting guard Jaylen Sims and forward Anthony Duruji, president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak announced in a press release.

All four players are undrafted free agents and presumably received non-guaranteed training camp contracts. But perhaps the Hornets can find a diamond in the rough among the group, and at the very least, fill out their G League roster.

Whaley is 6-foot-9 and is coming off earning Big East Defensive Player of the Year honors while at UConn.

Crutcher is 6-2 and hails from Dayton, where he averaged 17.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists as a senior. He was also named first-team All-Atlantic 10 for a second straight season.

Sims is 6-6 and is a native of Charlotte. Last season as a senior at UNC Wilmington he compiled averages of 16.4 points and 5.8 rebounds to lead the team.

And Duruji is 6-7 and spent his first two years at Louisiana Tech before finishing at Florida. In his two years with the Gators, he averaged 7.4 points and 4.2 rebounds.

Like the rest of the NBA, the Hornets are just a couple weeks away from tipping off training camp. They open the season Oct. 19 with a visit to the Spurs. 

They will be coached by Steve Clifford, who returns to replace former coach James Borrego.

OFFICIAL: We've signed @Jalen_NoRose1, @Anthony_Duruji, @jaylen_sims and @IsaiahWhaley to the team.@CorcoranHM | ?: https://t.co/IEqYUxccGf pic.twitter.com/bl22gd3NAi

— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) September 12, 2022