What does new Hornets lineup tell us about Borrego’s direction to finish out season?
Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego is going back to small-ball with his starting lineup against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and also putting more experience on the floor.
Borrego said his starters Friday would be P.J. Washington at center, Miles Bridges at power forward, Cody Martin at small forward and Terry Rozier and Devonte Graham at the guard spots. That means rookie Vernon Carey is out as starting center and Jalen McDaniels goes to the second unit at small forward.
The Hornets have lost six of their last seven games entering this match-up with the Cavs. With LaMelo Ball, Gordon Hayward and Malik Monk still out with injuries, the Hornets have plummeted offensively. They are last in the NBA in scoring over the past 14 games (a 102.6 points-per-game average) and are 28th among 30 teams in field-goal percentage (44.1%) in that same span.
Going small, with the 6-foot-7 Washington starting at center, helps offensively. Also, starting Martin puts the Hornets’ best perimeter defender in the starting unit.
The Hornets have dropped in the Eastern Conference standings from fourth to eighth over the past two weeks, and are no longer a cinch to at least qualify for the play-in tournament, for the 7th- through 10th-best records in each conference. Borrego said in this situation -- with 14 games left in a playoff race -- he will lean toward experience over development.
“There are guys who have been here before, who have tasted this moment. I’m probably going to move in that direction right now,” Borrego said.
Borrego started using a smaller front-court — with Washington at center and Bridges as a starter — more extensively before Washington missed two games with an ankle sprain. Initially after the injury, Washington played off the bench, but was getting starter’s minutes, mostly at center.
This new starting lineup could be the norm at least until Ball and Monk recover. Hayward figures to be the last of the three to return. Playing two 6-7 players at center and power forward is problematic in some match-ups, but Borrego is leaning to that as generally his best option for now.
“It gives us our best chance to score. and bringing Cody Martin (into the starters) helps us defensively,” Borrego said. “We’ve seen success with the small lineup...Now, I need to go back to this group and see what we have here.”
LaMelo Ball recovery update
Ball’s cast was removed Tuesday, and a CT scan showed his fractured right wrist has healed. The last step is Ball regaining sufficient flexibility in his hand, after a month of inactivity, to be ruled ready to play.
“From Day 1 to where he’s at today, he’s made a significant jump,” Borrego said. “We still need to figure that out over the next week or so, where he’s at. But I’m seeing progress. There are no setbacks.”
Vernon Carey’s role this season
Rookie Vernon Carey had a spectacular debut as an NBA starter, scoring 21 points against the Brooklyn Nets on April 16. He started the following three games, but totaled only 25 minutes in those games — all losses. Carey had some foul issues, as the Hornets figure out how to use him best defensively.
Borrego said he doesn’t plan to “bury” Carey on the bench, but it also sounds like Borrego will lean toward the experience of Cody Zeller and Bismack Biyombo for reserve center minutes.
“It doesn’t mean Vern is out of the rotation, but I’ll take a look at the bigs who have been here,” Borrego said.
Borrego said he’s asked players with minimal NBA experience to play bigger roles lately than they were probably ready to handle.
“We’re asking guys who were out of the rotation to go make plays for us. And make shots for us. And not just for one quarter, for 48 minutes.” Borrego said.
“We’ve got guys that were not in the rotation at all playing significant minutes, asking them to make plays over and over again.”
This story was originally published April 23, 2021 at 7:29 PM.
