What Charlotte Hornets said after losing to New York Knicks for second time in a week
Steve Clifford chuckled briefly while trying to explain the never-ending saga for the Charlotte Hornets, and how it’s still in play even with Miles Bridges’ highly-anticipated return.
“We’ve got to get to — I’ve been saying this for two years and we can’t do it — ‘these are the guys we are going to play, this is who they are going to play with,’” the coach said Saturday night. “It’s great having Miles back, but we’ve got to figure that out, where it’s going to slow us down a little, too. It’s not an excuse.
“It doesn’t mean we can’t play and win, but that’s the reality of what you want to do. It’s going to be easier for players when they know, ‘These are my minutes, this is who I’m playing with, this is what we are going to run when I’m out there.’ And we just haven’t been able to get to that.”
Knowing the Hornets’ injury history, there will probably be an actual Bigfoot sighting before that ever happens. Charlotte’s early-season woes continued in a 122-108 loss to New York at Spectrum Center, and the Hornets are still scuffling, unable to put it all together consistently.
In dropping their sixth game already by double digits and trailing the Knicks wire-to-wire in defeat, it’s obvious the Hornets (3-9) have a long way to go until they can rectify their myriad issues and attempt to end the NBA’s longest playoff drought. If this keeps up, their streak will undoubtedly stretch to eight years come spring.
“Of course we want to win, but we’re just trying to figure each other out,” Bridges said. “It’s better days ahead. We’ve just got to continue to get better. We know we’ve got a tough schedule, but (it’s) one win at a time.”
To get to that point, though, a vast improvement on one side of the ball is a necessity.
“I think the root of this game was just getting back on defense,” Brandon Miller said. “I think we kind of struggled maintaining our man in transition. I think that’s just an effort thing with us, something we’ve got to clean up going into the game against Boston.”
The same bunch of Celtics — plus new addition Jrue Holiday — that pounded the Hornets in the preseason finale are indeed on tap next. But what makes Charlotte think they can turn it around against the Eastern Conference’s upper crust on Monday?
“I mean, it’s the NBA,” Bridges said. “You are going to play tough games every night. Boston is probably the best team in the NBA, so it’s going to bring the best out of us. We’ll be good.”
Here’s what else the Hornets had to say Saturday night:
On Brandon Miller
“(He can improve on) the defensive end, for sure, I think like all young players,” Clifford said. “The hardest thing about the NBA is not the transformation to offense, it’s to defense. It’s not because of coaching, it’s because the players are much better and because of the pick-and-roll schemes. College pick-and-roll game, and it’s not because of the coaches, it’s because the players are young, is pretty simple stuff.
“Now you start getting (Damian) Lillard out there and (Jalen) Brunson out there, guys like that who really know how to play and there’s different schemes, different reads, that’s the hardest thing. Defense is the harder thing to get down than offense for a rookie player.”
On Miles Bridges
“Miles is a primary scorer,” Clifford said. “He’s going to create. He was 20-plus points per game two years ago and he puts the heat on the defense. He’s creative, he can shoot the ball and so it does change the dynamics for other guys. And the sooner we can figure that out the better.”
On lack of production from PJ Washington and Gordon Hayward in last two games
“Obviously that’s something we’ve got to work on (Sunday),” Clifford said. “We’ve got to try to help them and come up with ways to maybe help them get an easy one. That goes hand-in-hand. That’s not just the player — that’s the coach, too.”
Finding a balance on good shot selection
“For every team I believe, except for Golden State, if the ball doesn’t hit the paint in the first eight seconds, the shots aren’t going in,” Clifford said. “Think about it: every 3-on-2 in our league is what? A three. And we don’t make a high percentage of them and that’s fact. So, the best shot in the league last year was first eight seconds of the shot clock when the ball hit the paint.
“It is a big difference between when the ball hit the paint and when it didn’t. And the second best shot in the league last year was a halfcourt possession when the ball hit the paint. So that to me is pretty simple. The ball’s got to hit the paint — unless your name is Melo (Ball). And even for him, he’s living in the paint. He’s in the paint way more than he ever has been before and it’s paying off for him. He shot 12 free throws (Friday) night and that’s going to be part of him getting to the next level.”
On the status of Nick Richards, who’s in concussion protocol
“He doesn’t feel good. I can’t give you any real insight on how he feels physically. (Without him we miss) physicality, rim protection, he runs the floor well and I think he’s playing better and better. So, hopefully it won’t be very long.”
On the influence of coaching consultant Patrick Ewing
“For me personally, he’s been great because he watches all the games and he calls and we talk about it,” Clifford said. “We worked together for a long time and we’ve been good friends, so he’s honest in, like, ‘What the hell’s wrong with the defense?’ That’s the third call.
“That’s usually right after Jeff (Van Gundy) calls and tells me the same thing and then Stan (Van Gundy). That’s my daily schedule. So, in that way, but also with the players, he spends with guys in practice and he’s helped a bunch of them. He calls them sometimes even when he’s not here, so it’s great to have him around. He’s a huge asset.”
