Charlotte Hornets must find some offense; so change coming to rotation, coach says
Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego needs more offense, and that will change the rotation for Wednesday’s road game with the Atlanta Hawks.
The Hornets are 24th among 30 NBA teams in offensive efficiency, and that number has fallen in three consecutive losses heading into the Hawks game.
“There are lineup tweaks that will be made for tomorrow. Not necessarily in the starting lineup. But along the way, trying to find some different combinations of guys as we move throughout a game to give us more offense,” Borrego said following practice Tuesday.
The Hornets average 1.02 points per possession this season in a 2-5 start. In the three-game losing streak (home against the Memphis Grizzlies and back-to-back losses to the Philadelphia 76ers), the Hornets averaged 0.98 points per possession.
Borrego didn’t specify what changes to anticipate. But based on Monday’s loss in Philadelphia, the trend could be more of Malik Monk with Cody Martin edged out.
Monk, who missed training camp following a positive COVID-19 test, got his first regular-season playing time Monday. In 10 fourth-quarter minutes, he missed his only shot but totaled three assists. Martin, who Borrego has called the Hornets’ best “pound-for-pound defender,” hasn’t played the past two games, falling behind twin brother Caleb in the rotation.
Borrego said playing Monk Monday wasn’t pre-planned.
“That was just a gut decision,” Borrego said. “I thought he looked good. He’s finding his rhythm. Malik is a skilled young man who can make plays and finish. We need some more offense as we move forward, and he’s someone who can provide that for us.”
Borrego has dramatically more choices at the wing positions this season than last season, particularly with the addition of Gordon Hayward. With Monk missing a chunk of the preseason, and regaining his conditioning after COVID-19 protocols, he fell behind the Martin twins and Jalen McDaniels in Charlotte’s rotation.
This is a particularly consequential season for Monk, as he becomes a free agent next summer.
“Super, super, super freaking frustrating (with) the waiting,” Monk told The Observer last week, adding, “I know I can help a lot.”
Sample size
Borrego said he’s wary of making widespread personnel changes based on a seven-game sample. He was already forced to change the starting lineup when center Cody Zeller broke his hand in the season-opener. That moved Bismack Biyombo up from the second unit, and Borrego now uses forwards P.J. Washington and Miles Bridges part-time at center.
“This is not a great sample size yet,” Borrego said. “There are a couple of metrics -- lineups -- with a good enough sample that I’m evaluating right now. A lot of them, we just don’t have a great sample size: Ten minutes of a group playing together is not a great sample.”
So far, Borrego has played 25 different player combinations this season, with the minutes for each lineup varying from a high of 66 (the five current starters) to a low of four.
The five starters haven’t been good together, as evidenced by the Hornets tendency to have poor starts. Right now, that starting combination is a minus-23.2 points per 100 possessions. Offense is the biggest concern with that group, generating just 86.1 points per 100 possessions.
“I think the starting group has a pretty good sample now. I’ll continue to evaluate that,” Borrego said. “We do have to get off to better starts. That group is struggling to score -- that is the facts.”
