Hornets’ Dennis Smith Jr. enjoying a resurgence, will be key in LaMelo Ball’s absence
For once, the basketball world was actually focused on the events happening in uptown Charlotte and yet in typical Hornets fashion, it didn’t involve them at all.
With LaMelo Ball out for the season after undergoing successful surgery to repair a fracture in his right ankle earlier in the day, the eyeballs affixed to the action centered on the new version of the Phoenix Suns and their prized trade deadline pickup — Kevin Durant — making his debut. This is the new reality for the Hornets over the season’s final six weeks, a situation that leaves them fighting for any sort of relevancy.
The most excitement the team generates might be in individual highlights, like the dunks Dennis Smith Jr. is slowly racking up. Although he didn’t throw down a rim-rattler in the Hornets’ 105-91 loss to Phoenix on Wednesday at Spectrum Center, it’s taking Smith a while to get back to all the well-wishes he’s received, particularly after his thunderous throwdown over Miami’s Max Strus last weekend.
“My phone was going crazy,” Smith said. “I don’t have Instagram, so I didn’t see all that. But a lot of people sent it to me, though, so it created a lot of buzz.”
Over the remaining 18 games without the services of Ball, who’s expected to make a full recovery, the Hornets (20-44) must adjust and incorporate more than a few tweaks in order to lessen some of the pressures placed on the shoulders of others. Ball does so many things and the Hornets quickly saw how much they missed him.
Charlotte failed to crack triple digits in scoring for just the fourth time since December and registered outputs in the teens in two of the fourth quarters against Phoenix – numbers that can surely be attributed to Ball’s absence.
“We’ve got to figure out the offense here,” coach Steve Clifford said. “I’ve got to get the playing groups down. When you lose someone like him, it’s not just his scoring. It’s his shot creation. Some of the ways we subbed tonight worked, but we have to figure out better ways to sub so we don’t have those stretches where we have lineups on the floor where it’s going to be hard to score or we’re super dependent on one.
“It’s important that we understand that once you have a way to play, you’ve got to commit to that. From now to the end of the year, we’re not going to be scoring 135 a night anymore. We’ll play a lot better than this offensively, but we’re going to have to defend, rebound and be low turnover every night.”
Clifford went with Terry Rozier at point guard to start the game, moving the veteran over from his usual shooting guard spot and paired Kelly Oubre in the backcourt with him. Smith came off the bench and led the Hornets’ reserves with eight points to go along with six assists, five rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
He’s leaving his imprint on the action in a variety of ways, particularly defensively with his lunch pail mentality. The Hornets’ defense improves by 11.1 points per 100 possessions with Smith on the court this season, a mark that represents the second-best showing among all players to log at least 700 minutes this season.
In the nearly half-dozen outings leading up to their date with the Suns, Smith averaged 10.4 points on 50% percent shooting, which was the first time in his career he’s averaged at least double-digits in points and made half his shots or better over an 11-game span. Add that to the career-best 1.2 steals he’s posting per game and him ranking 12th in the NBA in steals-to-turnovers (0.92) and 17th in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.87.
It sheds even more light on Smith’s renaissance in Charlotte. He’s almost reinvented himself, proving he still has game.
“I think it was major because last year when I was out of the league because I got waived because (of injury and) I couldn’t play for the rest of the season, and going into the summer I didn’t have a deal or anything in place,” Smith said. “So everybody was like, ‘Oh, he can’t play, he’s not an NBA player.’ This, that and the third.
“It didn’t really mean much to me when they saying that because I know who I am. But to be able to come in and prove the people that believe in me right, I think that means a lot.”
As does Clifford’s confidence in him.
“That means more than anything,” Smith said, “even more than the work I can put in, just having a coach that believes in me. And he allows me to go out there and be myself. That’s major. He’s my favorite coach ever since I’ve been in the league, so I’m thankful.”
Now, it’s going to be on Smith to help lead things in the backcourt. The Hornets’ offense dropped by 6.6 points per 100 possessions when Ball is not on the floor, which is more than when any other player is out.
Ball is also the lone player in the league this season to average at least 23 points and eight assists while also connecting on three 3-pointers per game. In fact, just five players – Golden State star and Charlotte native Steph Curry, Dallas’ Luka Doncic, Philadelphia’s James Harden, Portland’s Damian Lillard and Atlanta’s Trae Young – have accomplished that feat over a full season.
There’s simply no denying what Ball brings to the table.
“He gave so much to the team. It’s not one person that can step up and do what he was doing,” Smith said. “We are not going to be able to replace him. But it’s still going to be a team effort to try to make up for what we are missing with him out there, and I think if everybody takes what approach like we’ve all got to take it to the next level, I think we can keep it going.”
