Hornets
The Hornets are trying to rebuild and rise, but the injury bug just keeps right on biting. The latest hit forward Brandon Miller, who was off to an excellent start. Now, he’s out for the season following wrist surgery.
That’s only the latest in a long line of setbacks, as noted by ESPN’s Kevin Pelton. For starters, even when relatively healthy, they can’t seem to put the ball through that orange cylinder thing.
“The Hornets have improved defensively under first-year coach Charles Lee, jumping from 29th in defensive rating to 19th,” Pelton wrote. “Unfortunately, even with LaMelo Ball averaging nearly 30 points, they can’t score: Charlotte ranks 28th in offense.”
As it stands, Charlotte is trying to build winning habits while … well, you know, staying in the lottery game.
The Hornets would surely love to see Ball and center Mark Williams stay healthy, given neither has played more than 43 games the previous two seasons, but they also want to be in position to land nearby Duke superstar Cooper Flagg by winning the draft lottery,” Pelton wrote.
Bulls
Once again, the Bulls seem to be headed to nowhere-land, sort of spinning their wheels as they wait on potential trades (Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, Lonzo Ball, Patrick Williams, etc.) So, what now?
“The Bulls seem headed to the East play-in tournament by default, having opened up a three-game lead over Philadelphia for 10th,” Pelton wrote. “Unfortunately, Chicago looks no closer to actually competing in the postseason. The Bulls’ minus-2.9 point differential ranks 22nd in the league.”
They can still salvage the season, or at least the upcoming summer, but they will probably have to lose a little more. That’s right — not win.
“Given the top-10-protected pick Chicago owes San Antonio from the 2021 trade to acquire DeMar DeRozan, staying behind the Spurs in the standings is the Bulls’ most important task,” Pelton wrote. “That would allow them to slide down a spot in the lottery while keeping the pick.”
Timberwolves
It’s hard to justify the summer Karl-Anthony Towns trade with the Knicks at the moment, considering the Timberwolves look only partially like the team that advanced to the West finals last season.
“Even with relatively lower expectations for the Timberwolves based on my stats-based projections, I’m still disappointed to see them hovering around .500,” Pelton wrote. “Minnesota didn’t have a plan in place for Mike Conley‘s decline and has gotten little from lottery pick Rob Dillingham. Friday in New York was the first time this season Dillingham played more than 10 minutes in a win.”
So, what can the Wolves do to howl again?
“Better fortune in close games would help the Timberwolves, who have played a league-high 29 games that entered clutch time (within five points in the last five minutes) and have gone 13-16 in them,” Pelton noted. “Minnesota’s plus-1.9 differential ranks a comfortable eighth in the West.”
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