Steve Clifford wants something to change with Hornets’ style of play. Will it happen?
Even with the absurd amount of injuries and the constant juggling of new five-player lineups, Steve Clifford remains convinced the Charlotte Hornets can still win games.
Their razor-thin margin means there’s a formula they must follow to have a much better chance at doing just that, though, and the coach is trying to drill it into the Hornets’ heads.
“We need to play with more pace, up and down,” Clifford said. “And the other thing is the ball has got to hit the paint. We’ve got to get the ball going to the basket. And we’ve been really good at that at times, and then in this last stretch of games not as good.
“But that ball’s got to hit the paint.”
That extra pass is key for the Hornets and they were at their best against the Washington Wizards on Friday night when they made the extra pass. But that all disappeared in the fourth quarter, when they chalked up just one assist before the closing seconds and wilted in a 112-100 defeat at Capital One Arena, pushing their losing streak to six games.
“We’re not going to be a high-powered offensive team,” Clifford said. “We don’t have that kind of roster right now and that ball has got to move like it did in the third quarter we are going to be fine. And when it doesn’t and the ball sticks, we just don’t have that kind of team.”
Clifford can’t be happy the Hornets didn’t heed his message long enough, especially in crunch time against a Wizards team that hadn’t won since January. He’s constantly driving home his point while teaching during their team video sessions, utilizing their flat screen television on wheels to ensure there are visuals supporting his expectations.
“If I didn’t, I’d be an idiot,” Clifford said. “No, I show them everything.”
More film study is probably in order then.
Davis Bertans is one of the beneficiaries of solid ball movement, and he pointed out how certain floor combinations sometimes make it difficult for the Hornets to whip it around and break the defense down.
“I think that’s because of all of the players who were traded here, only a couple are ball-handlers,” Bertans said. “Vasa (Vasilije Micić) can handle it, but he’s still a good ball movement guy, Seth (Curry), even though he’s out, he’s basically the same movement guy like me. I barely dribble the ball, so Grant (Williams) also loves to move it.
“So, we kind of have a good balance of guys who can attack the rim by themselves and then have the rest of us kind of get the ball moving and that kind of opens up the game for everybody else.”
If they can do that more frequently and cut back on the stagnant possessions that seem to stack up, often leading to droughts and subsequent deficits, maybe the Hornets will reverse their fortunes and get back to how they were playing around the All-Star break.
There’s a trickle-down effect associated with some of the sport’s intricacies that seem so inconsequential at times, yet are so important. Eliminating ineffective one-on-one play caused by the ball sticking in a player’s hands too long falls into that category, and it’s another one of the small things these Hornets have to learn as they attempt to establish a brand of basketball that is effective regardless of who’s on the court.
“It’s trusted energy, it’s contagious,” Williams said. “When you play a game that everyone enjoys playing, everyone really respects each other’s potential, getting the ball, moving it, trusting your teammates, it allows you to play with a certain level of chemistry and trust, and it allows you to play with a certain level of chemistry and trust.
“And it allows you to build something that even when people come that aren’t a part of the team — whether it’s free agency, whether it is a trade — where no matter what happens to your team, you have a culture you’ve identified. And that’s what Cliff is trying to build.”
This story was originally published March 8, 2024 at 9:51 PM.
