The Charlotte Hornets could make a big splash towards the end of the lottery in this year’s NBA Draft. Who would be the ideal selection?
After the NBA’s reigning Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball fell to the Charlotte Hornets at No. 3 in last years draft, it’s time to see what other young talent they can add around him and an already decent young core.
With a probable starting lineup of LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward, P.J. Washington, and Cody Zeller, this year’s draft yields the perfect opportunity to bring in a younger option at the five spot.
One prospect that could end up being the ideal selection for the Hornets is Kai Jones.
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Why Kai Jones makes sense for the Charlott Hornets
Kai Jones is a 20-year-old big man standing at the height of 6-foot-11 with an almost 7-foot-2 wingspan. His sophomore stats at Texas won’t jump off the screen (8.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG) but what really intrigues me about Jones is his incredible athleticism mixed with his build as a stretch-big.
Jones is coming off a season in which he shot 39 percent shooting from 3-point range and is known to have a very fuid jump shot. The Hornets can’t – or shouldn’t – look past that promise.
No prospect is perfect though; Jones has some inconsistency with his rebounding while also not always being able to get his own shot on the other end of the floor. Rebounding is mostly effort, so if he has a high motor in the league mixed with his build and athleticism I don’t see that being an issue for him. Not being able to get his own shot is an issue that can be fixed vastly by one of his teammates, that’s where we move onto his fit.
Kai Jones’ fit with the current roster
As we know LaMelo is the star and leader of this team at the point guard position, and I see this 1 and 5 tandem working wonders for years to come. LaMelo is next level with the ball in his hands and with a lob/shooting threat like Kai playing down low would lead to many open looks for the both of them. It’s pretty impressive what LaMelo was able to do with Cody Zeller as his main big, just imagine what he can do with a freak athlete.
Another reason he is a good fit is because he makes so much sense next to his frontcourt partner: P.J. Washington. Having two stretch bigs would lead to some lethal spacing allowing their other teammates to get easier looks at the rim or they can pass out if the opposing bigs lapse and leave them open around the arc.
Washington is undersized for the position and isn’t the greatest defender so having someone of Kai’s build and caliber next to him makes perfect sense. The other fits aren’t as important but he would also fit great alongside the other main pieces like Hayward, Rozier, Bridges, etc.
The way the draft will unwind is never predictable so we don’t know how draft day will turn out. For Jones, he’s being projected from anywhere as a top 10 pick to being selected late in the first round.
Even if it may be seen as a reach to some, the Hornets should take a chance on Jones. The duo of LaMelo and Jones would be must watch basketball and could lead to some playoff basketball in Charlotte. I think Charlotte fans should be salivating at this opportunity.