This episode of the Locked on Hornets podcast features Doug Branson and Walker Mehl discussing the Charlotte Hornets’ performance at the NBA Summer League. They discuss rookie Brandon Miller’s up-and-down play so far, with Doug saying “What separates nearly every great player from every other also ran player is how they respond to struggles… I always love to see how players especially early on in their careers, respond to those struggles.”
PJ Washington is still unsigned but the parties are getting closer according to a new report from Sean Deveney of Heavy.com. Walker is done messing around and think the Hornets should get him signed. “If they don’t care, then it doesn’t matter that you have bird rights, it doesn’t matter that you give him raises, you’ll let him walk. That’ll be it. If you do care, then this year is going to have to be spent trying to get back in the good graces of PJ.”
Finally, they discuss the NBA’s new in-season tournament, with Doug saying “I think all of these leagues and worlds where these RSN networks are going away and everything’s going streaming and things are changing. The game has to change to get a little bit more attention from younger folks. And I think this is a good start.”
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The Hornets play a couple of games in Summer league over the weekend it did Not go very well we'll talk about Brandon Miller's performance and the Situation surrounding PJ Washington all Today unlocked on Hornets we're locked On hornets part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day in America We live It's locked on hornets part of the Locked on podcast Network it's your team Every day thanks for making us your First listen we are free we are Available anywhere you get your pods That always includes YouTube That's Doug Branson you can check his sub stack Everett hornetsboxcore.com he's got all The notes for you on the summer league Action we've seen and we only have two More games left possibly we'll get to That in a moment And I'm Walker male you can listen to me On WFNZ from 12 to 3 every day yeah I Was gonna say not as much dancing in the Intro but there's not a whole lot of Reason to dance right now Doug with the Way that they're performing in summer League maybe a few but not many uh no Well I think it's very comparable to Last summer league you've got uh the the Major draft pick showing some flashes uh But but there are definitely some things To work on You've got a standout second round pick
Last year it was Bryce McGowan's this Year it's his clone Amari Bailey I mean They're very similar And uh yeah a lot of similarities you've Got I mean even well I mean Bryce McGowan's might even take the Nick Richards role of being a little bit too Ready uh for the next season and he Might you know in these remaining two Games my exit stage left we'll see he's Already not starting by the way I got my Tenfold hat on that one on Bryce McGowan's not starting after you know Potentially being the source of the true Hoop uh coaching debacle leak yeah David Thorpe this is all your fault Anyway uh yeah so it's it's been Difficult to watch I think it's Particularly been difficult to watch Because I think a lot of people were Excited to see Brandon Miller come out And do some of the things that we all Saw him do at uh Alabama you know Particularly against South Carolina Everyone sort of keyed in on that game And uh you know these summer league Teams they are not the University of South Carolina they've presented a lot Of tough matchups for him yeah let's go With Brandon Miller in this first Segment we have two games and we were It's funny I do like letting the people Know a little bit what's going on behind The curtain trying to figure out content
Like what do you lead off with do you Lead off with the most recent game their Lakers game or do you go with the wimby Performance and you kind of break it Down and you decide well even if we're Two days away that wouldn't be Performance that's the one to talk about And Doug I thought that was probably the Shooting wasn't great he didn't shoot as Well as he did his first game that was By far his best just overall shooting Performance so far based off of volume And based off of efficiency I still Thought this was the best game that Brandon played to be honest with you Again San Antonio I thought defensively He showed some nice stuff I thought it Was been a roller coaster defensively Right I really think Brandon has gone Good defensively game one I thought he Was not good at all game two defensively I thought he played a lot better on that End against San Antonio we had to stand Up we'll be trying to back down Brandon Miller great job yeah Brandon just Stopped it no no more going to the rim And then wimby turns it over or whatever But it all LED with great defense by Brandon and then in this game I didn't Think he was very good I think it's been Very up and down on that end offensively Three of ten came out firing right we Talked about the over under being set at 15 field goal attempts compared to the
Second game the last one in the California classic where he only shot Four he went to a four so we got his Shots up 15 in that game before we move On to the Lakers uh Doug what did you Make of his performance against wimby Third summer league big game but the First of the Vegas session What separates nearly every great player From every other also ran player is is How they respond to struggles whether That be game to game you know having a Short memory or whether it be struggling For an entire season and getting back Into the laboratory and figuring Something out in your game that's going To allow you or your body it's going to Allow you to perform better so I always Love to see how players especially early On in their careers respond to those Struggles you know shooting slumps Whatever And Brandon no doubt struggled in those First two games heading into this Matchup with wimby and the lights were Going to be bright you know the whole NBA world is watching this wimby debut And so that means they didn't come for Brandon but they're going to be watching Brandon and they're going to be Critiquing Brandon and Brandon decided To go from four shot attempts to 15 shot Attempts you asked for 15 Walker he Delivered he gave you 15. he listens to
The show no doubt about it sure I'm sure He does yes I'm sure he loves it so he Gave us he gave us the 15. he was Aggressive Um he he looks sharp you know the the Shooting hasn't really been there uh you Know throughout the summer league but he Was putting them up and so I like that You know I I because I think I think if we're being honest this Rookie season is more than likely going To be a struggle for Brandon Miller Because as Seth Greenberg pointed out on The broadcast of the Lakers game his Skill set is out in front of his body Right now whether that be just naturally He wasn't very big maybe mono has played A role in this The Motto that he had at Some point during the late portion of The Bama season and he lost a bunch of Weight and all the GM's you know that he Met with during the pre-draft process Were like whoa buddy you got to bulk up You know so we we see the flashes of the Skill we see the shot when the shot goes Down it looks beautiful And you know defensively we're seeing His I just think his instincts are good Defensively it's all about It's all about I think can he sustain The sort of day-to-day wear and tear That's going to be Unleashed upon him During this NBA season and how will he React mentally to struggling both
Offensively to get by guys to create for Himself and struggling with with the Shot not going down necessarily because If the shot doesn't go down for Brandon Miller this season you know it's going To be difficult for him game to game uh You know he's got to have a shot going Down he's got to have others creating For him And defensively he's he's going to get Hurt in some of these matchups not hurt Like injured but hurt in terms of he's He's going to get a bruising put on him So how does he mentally you know react To that I think will be a big Determining factor in what his career Trajectory ultimately is yeah I think His rookie season we've talked about This off-ball stuff man I do think that He's going to be a help as long the shot Needs to fall we know that that's some Pretty simplistic analysis but we do Know about Brandon Miller and his Ability to rotate the basketball be able To swing it to the other guy if he Doesn't like a matchup going to the rack Then he'll kick it out there are so many Passes that Brandon has where there is a Dribble attempt to the rim he doesn't Like his options he doesn't like his Ability to get there at that time or It's the right read I don't want to Overlook that too or it's just the right Read to then kick out to the perimeter
We've seen countless times in just the Four games that he's played where you've Seen that type of play I think some of That he gets bumped along lot off of his Spot I think a lot of that is whether he Just thinks that the big guy is going to Come up and meet him at a certain spot Before he gets to the rim and then he Kicks it out but that that kind of stuff Is going to help too with real NBA Players right so even if you want Brandon Miller to take over more in Summer league and that's okay by the way You can ask your number two overall pick To take over but if he's not then he can Kick out and you're going to have real NBA Shooters Um helping him out in the offense and a Half court sets uh in those types of Scenarios yeah I think all of that's Great like the play making is great you Know the passes that he's made are like Oh okay that's you know it's not a pass You expect somebody his age or his size To be able to to be able to make all of That's great and it it will be great Several years from now when his body Catches up but I don't think it is Rookie season we're going to see a lot Of that happen because I don't think NBA Level Defenders are going to let him get Three four Rebels uh before they put a Body on him and pick a spot that's just One right because not even in G league
Is he getting four sometimes before he Kicks out so yeah but that's what I'm Saying like I don't think playmaking is Going to be I think we're more going to See him in that role that Miles Bridges Had in his rookie season of everybody Else is creating and drawing attention And you've got Brandon Miller waiting Patiently in the corner which he play Honestly he played that role a little Bit at Alabama too you know I mean you Go back and look at that 41 Point Performance and there were multiple Possessions where he was just kind of Sitting in the corner everything was Happening around him everything pulled The attention away from him boom he's Open bam he knocks it down so I think That's going to be a lot of what we see From Brandon Miller and so what we're Seeing in summer league is so different Than what we're going to see is rookie Season but there are what encourages you Is that there are these little flashes These little moments in his game where You go oh man if everything else comes Together you know this is something That's missing from a lot of people's Games and he has it already it's it's Going to mean great things for him but But we have to see and I think he you Know what's going to really Decide whether he's going to become that Player is how he deals with some of
These struggles yeah I mean there's the One so you did see the one mismatch one Of the buckets he hit yesterday against The Lakers demoy Hodge the smallest Player on the floor found himself on Brandon Miller and Brandon saw that Mismatch got to the basket kind of it Was really more so of uh of you know About 10 feet out and maybe not even 10 Feet and but he took care of that Mismatch and then made one of the four Field goals that he hit against the Lakers but the shooting percentage is Down the three-point shot not falling For him on really all that high volume Good shooting percentage first game two Of four one of two from three-point land Second game and then the next two three Of ten and then zero of spin zero of Eight I think you think zero seven so Yeah those are the numbers and if the Shot falls off ball Brandon is going to Really help you especially with that Added ability to pass and make the right Decision and if he doesn't knock down Those shots then can he hold up Defensively enough you know are our Defenders is still going to be able to Get by Defenders to you know get into The paint and then kick out right like Yes all the same stuff he's not going to Get 17 attempts more than likely Especially maybe later in the season but Not early in the season he's not going
To get 17 attempts so he's not going to Have as many opportunities to miss Three-point shots as he did in this game Against the Lakers Um he did have his three-point shot Block for the second consecutive game Now the first game is against wimby and Wimpy blocked it and he's you know in That second wimby game he also blocks Someone else's three-point shot that's Kind of a Wimpy thing uh but the second Game I can't recall exactly who blocked That shot for La uh but we were a little Bit worried about the low release so It's it's something to watch you know He's going so I saw that too well and And so ultimately I think it was Max Christie I could be wrong about that but I saw you wanted to do Max Christy Max Christy's your guy that was your guy in That draft you like Max Christy I think so I think I I think he was an Interview in the Charlotte horn like I Think he was just a picture yeah I don't Know oh I love Max Chrissy no I had no Clue that's I forgot about that I never Forget okay Max Christy I I think it was Him who blocked the shot but I also went Back and looked at it a little bit more So Either way it's all the same result but I think I don't even know if you blocked It or if Brandon lost it coming up I was Trying to look at it and it's recruiter
Film well yeah it was out in some space But but I do think that the the contest Might have bothered Brandon enough to Where he shot it wasn't so sure and then Maybe it was going to pass but I don't Even know if maybe they counted it as a Block I'm not sure but anyways yeah You're right ultimately the low release Is something that we were worried about Being contested being you know Was he going to be able to get some of That off and have you seen the One-handed like floater jumpers that's What he was living with in this Lakers Game which is the one-handed kind of Driving it wasn't pull up mid-range Jumpers right it's just the one-handed It's not a lamello floater because Lamelo floaters out in front of his body It's almost like a a hook floater I Don't even know it's different Yeah uh yeah it was odd and we were we Were promised stay mid-range game uh but He hit it by the way he did he did it he Missed it and he hit it yeah both He did he did do both all right I'm also Struggling too Oh man I don't know if we can make that Word let's see if we can make some other Stuff The float shot well I mean it's the Fluke shot is what but that doesn't Necessarily you don't want it to be the Fluke you want it to be legitimate you
Don't want it to be a fluke all right Coming up next on the lockdown Hornets Podcast we're working it out folks don't Go to sleep on the Hornets just yet in Real time not very well we'll give you Some other summer league observation but We do have a report maybe legitimate Maybe you raise your eyebrow at it I Don't know but we do have something to Talk about with PJ Washington still not Signed by any NBA team and then of Course includes the Charlotte Hornets But first I want to tell you about Ibotta this episode is brought to you by Ibotta Ibotta gives you cash back on Hundreds of grocery items from produce To personal care to Pantry Goods so you Can make sure you're beating inflation No matter what you're purchasing either Link your loyalty account or upload your Receipt after you shop and get your cash Back it's that easy the average I bought A user earns about 120 dollars per year That could cover the cost of an entire Shopping trip or you could you use your Cash back to buy that flight you've been Eyeing that game you're dying to go to Or the fancy dinner you've been craving As well right now Ibotta is offering our Listeners five dollars Just For Trying Ibotta by use the code locked on when You register just go to the app store or Google Play Store and download the free Ibotta app and use code locked actually
Not locked on it's locked l-o-c-k-e-d That is Ibotta ib-o-t-t-a in the Google Play or App Store and use code locked L-o-c-k-e-d more lockdown Hornets coming Up next Is locked on Hornets Doug is wearing his Sunglasses indoors at as we record 8 23 A.m Doug explain yourself I am smothered In U.S soccer came down to Charlotte to Watch the men's national teams uh Jesus Back to back Hattie there's your soccer Analysis for the day but yeah you don't Want to see these eyeballs okay these Eyeballs these red nose have seen some Things if you will and uh yeah I'm Recovering and I'm doing my best here It's time for more of the locked on Hornets podcast Thank you All right Doug we're talking about some Of the young players on this team PJ now Pretty much a veterani going into his Fifth season and we just don't know what Team he's gonna play for probably the Best free agent available at this point Because everybody else has been signed And yes you know I love PJ that's not Necessarily a comment on PJ Washington That's more of a comment on well we are Here what's the date it's July 10th free Agency started more than a week ago and We still don't have any closure on PJ so We'll see what happens we do have a Report though from Sean devony Doug I
Know you came across this report about a Possible situation that is close to Maybe having a deal done between these Two parties um although maybe uh one of The deals that's on the table is not a Good one what do you have for us uh Definitely reporting from Las Vegas he Says now 10 days into the NBA's free Agency period most of the business that Has needed to be taken care of is in the Books but of those who have yet to Secure a new contract for next year the Best of the bunch is pretty clearly PJ Washington and according to those with Knowledge of the situation it is Possible that will stay that way there Has been some new progress on a contract For Washington and Charlotte but there Is still a gap between the sides Washington would be willing to sign the Qualifying offer A source told Heavy Sports if that Gap can't be bridged and Take his chances on unrestricted free Agency and what should be a richer Market in 2024. so there you go devony He's got his sources I would say more than likely that source Is probably the agent for PJ Washington Uh saying that he look that the deal is Closer they're getting closer to a Number uh but that Washington would be Willing to sign the qualifying offer I Guess the question would be do you buy That do you buy the PJ Washington is uh
Would sign the qualifying offer even if They're getting closer on a deal yeah I Know I I absolutely buy that PJ would do That because if they're so far apart on A deal that it would make all the sense Especially okay so let's just talk to Numbers right 20 million dollars this is Asking price we've heard it reported at Different times and multiple times now With PJ so let's say that the Hornets Don't even come up to 17 18 million if PJ's not willing to come down or budge At all whatever we don't know but let's Say the Hornets are not the ones that Are willing to come up to 17 or 18. Which Doug I don't know if you get that Read but I get that read that they're The ones not really willing to come up Close to that PJ Mark but we'll see so When you go to the I don't know 15 Million a year range even lower then at That point you sign for the qualifying Offer yeah you're one year Seven million away from what the Hornets Are offering on multiple years now go Ahead and sacrifice that eight seven get To unrestricted free agency in what is Going to be a richer Market but also There's going to be more teams yes now Free agents the class is going to be a Little better but it makes all the sense In the world for PJ if he doesn't get Anywhere close to what he wants makes All the sense in the world for him to
Sign the qualifying offer I mean the the Risk is injury that's always going to be A risk but I do think it's worth the Risk to sign the qo if you're not going To get anything close to what you've Been asking for this time well the risk Is injury for sure and that is a big Risk and you can't you can't just wipe That away I mean we saw it last season Everybody got injured you know and Except for PJ right and and he but he Benefited from that and so that leads me To the other risk which is that you're Potentially moving into a situation next Season where you are going to be a bench Player you know miles Bridges at the Four Gordon at the three two is Terry Rozier you've got Brandon Miller that Will will soak up some minutes for sure So what if PJ signs a qualifying offer And then his role is significantly Reduced this what this was this season Was his opportunity to audition to the League and say hey I was a starter for For uh the entire year and look I had a Career high in scoring look at all of The things that I can do and the he went Into free agency and the an NBA teams Resoundingly said okay fine you you Didn't make the playoffs yeah you know And that's the problem for any Hornet Yeah unfortunately and this is why I Feel bad for PJ Washington is that the Problem for all these Hornets is that
They perform well and the rest of the NBA says yeah but she did it for the Hornets and you didn't make the playoffs And if we're going to spend a bunch of Money if we're gonna make decisions on Players like Dallas Dallas said hey We'll just we'll just do you know a sign And trade to acquire the guy who has Playoff experience because we know that You know he'll per if we get to that Level which is the level we want to get To which is why we're acquiring players We want to acquire players that have That experience PJ does not have that Experience he would be a total question Mark when you got to that portion of the Season and teams are going to be less Willing to invest in those players so if I'm PJ Washington honestly I think this Is going to get down to a point where The the agent says look PJ You can take this risk but it might Benefit you to just lock this money up And then you know if if all goes well in Charlotte and they're able to bring back Miles Bridges long term and lamello Reaches all NBA you know all boats are Going to rise and so then when you get To the end of that contract maybe they Negotiate for something shorter term two Three years at the lower dollar amount Lets him get into free agency a couple Years from now hopefully the Hornets Have made the playoffs and then he can
Bank it then so I hear all of that I Think for me if we're talking about the Hornets not winning and that hurting is Free agency you expect the Hornets to Win more games than they did last year Even at this juncture yes still a risk Everything is a risk everything we're Talking about is a risk but the Hornets Should be winning more games hopefully Lamello stays healthy hopefully we have Yeah I mean miles Bridges and his Presence on this team is going to allow Them to win more games I think if you're PJ last year was more of a volume year Year prior was more of an efficiency Year if you bring him back to a role Where you are winning more games In part because PJ goes back to what is A role better suited for him the Efficiency goes up you see him play more Defense rather than you know or better Defense more defense rather than having To take so much of the offensive burden But still shows you a lot of that I Think teams that are wanting to give PJ A long-term deal understand what they Want him to play for those squads and Last year really wasn't it but if you Dial it back which is a role I expect Him to play this upcoming season and I Expect him to do very well at that role That's when I think okay not as much Volume but the efficiency was a lot more There it was a lot there I can't even
Talk so then I'll give you the contract Here that's what I kind of think with PJ That's why I would take the risk of Signing the qualifying offer if you Don't get anywhere close in my Neighborhood to what I want then I'd Sign the qualifying offer and then I'd Get the unrestricted free agency faster Well I'll just tell you that I don't Think the Hornets are concerned about Him signing the qualifying offer Uh because I I think this would be an Entirely different situation if this Ownership group in front office we're Going to be the ownership group in front Office five years from now but we know They're not there's no I don't think There's a long I don't think there's Really a long tail plan a long-term plan Uh of of how to get you know this team Constructed such that it can compete for An Eastern Conference Finals or an NBA Championship like there's I don't think That exists I think that's going to be Up to the next group that comes in to Really formulate that plan and so if PJ Were to sign the qualifying offer it Just again I'm not I'm not saying that This is a good or a bad I'm not really Making a judgment on this is a good or a Bad thing because I think it's a bad Thing when as an organization you say Hey you're gonna we're gonna go in and Resign all of our players and and do
Nothing else and then you don't re-sign The players that to me seems pretty like Pretty bad management okay but just Setting all of that aside for a second You are giving the next group options at That point Um and that because they could go to PJ Washington and Miles Bridges and throw Every bit of money they have at them if They feel like that that's the best Option or they can go into a 2024 market And be more aggressive which this which This current management has shown no Willingness to do so you have options at That point so I don't think the Hornets Are scared and they're like PJ look we Can get we can give you long-term Security or you can take the risk but It's not really a risk for us what well It depends on how much they care you're You're right you're right if they don't If they don't care then it doesn't Matter that you have bird rights it Doesn't matter that you give him raises You'll let him walk and that'll be it if You do care then this year is going to Have to be spent trying to get back in The good graces of PJ which is possible Which is possible if you want to keep Him long term but you just don't like The deal that he's been asking for now And then PJ signs says call qualifying Offer miles or miles bridges too by the Way maybe he feel not saying he should
Feel slighted by this but we know that He asked for 25 million a year and when He didn't get that and the Hornets Weren't close on that either he signed The qualifying offer maybe he feels Slighted by that maybe that is enough Determination for him to decide to sign With another team maybe this whole PJ Process is enough for that as well and You might you know you could yeah roll Your eyes out of whatever ipj can leave But if you care at all about bringing Him back you just didn't want to do it On that kind of deal then then there's Going to have to be some kind of mended Fences I would imagine because PJ can't Be happy about this I mean maybe you Care maybe you don't but I can't imagine PJ's happy about it well I think PJ's Disappointed that a market didn't Develop for for him you know no teams Were out there like begging to throw an Offer sheet at him and that's got to be Disappointing that's got to be a hit to The ego but I think if he can step back As this process drags out I think if he Can step back and say hey I've got an Opportunity to secure some long-term Money uh for myself for my family and if Maybe if I can get this thing on a Shorter term deal then I can get then I Can go back out on the marketplace in a Few years when there's going to be a lot More money floating around
Um and and hopefully you know figure it Out but you know he plays a position too The power forward position Uh the way he plays it Um is I think beneficial to teams he Kind of plays it like a four Wing combo Um but I think still the the market for Power forwards is suppressed he doesn't Play a true Wing position it's wings and Guards right there right now making all The money they're soaking up all the Market and you know unfortunately for Guys like PJ they've got a they've got To make some sacrifices even though Again it's got to be cognitive Dissonance right because he's looking at The situation going wait a minute I I showed so many more aspects of my Game I can be valuable to a playoff team I set a career high in scoring I did all Of these things like when you look at The tape I'm actually a really good Defensive player and and the rest of the NBA looked at all that and said meh No I don't know well not at 20 at 20. it Depends on how much you right because Grant Williams yes he's got the Championship experience he also came in A million dollars more than the full Level mid-level exception so that's why Dallas that's what I'm saying I think I Think if you're asking me to make a Prediction which you didn't but I'll Make one I think ultimately you know
This process does drag out I don't think It ends in a sign and trade I think Reality the sides will meet and it's Going to meet closer to Charlotte's Number which is what you think 14 15. you know it'll be some some a Couple million above the mid-level Exception And and that's where we're going to land I think it might it wouldn't surprise me If it's you know maybe a three-year deal Right instead of a four-year deal and Then you that's the compromise okay you Take the lower number but you get out Early everybody's happy yeah all right Let's talk one more segment about a new Change in the NBA coming up next on the Lockdown Hornets uh podcast don't go to Sleep on the Phone in NC's turn uh tournament it's Happening it's actually going to be Happening this year we've talked about It the last couple of Seasons trying to Make it more like soccer well it's Coming this year what do we think about The End season tournament we'll tell you Next on lockdown Hornets Though you've been a soccer fan recently You have uh you took in a lot of soccer And made you wear sunglasses it was the Morning after well now the NBA is Starting to take a little bit of what The soccer fans uh already experienced With an in-season tournament what can
You tell us about the in-season Tournament that the NBA is going ahead With and there is a what seems to be a Pretty tough group that the Charlotte Hornets are going to be in yeah there Are a lot of details here which I think The NBA has done a really good job Through social media and other outlets Of communicating so if you want the full Details definitely search that out I Mean generally it's going to be an In-season tournament teams are grouped Together and they're going to Essentially play regular season games That count towards qualifying for a Vegas tournament that and all of this is Going to happen in the November December Area of the schedule that typically you And I have experienced there's going to Be a bump of people typically this is What typically happens Pre-nba cup is that people get super Excited for the the beginning of the Season and maybe they're like the first Week or so and everybody's looking at How the new players and new teams are Constructed and then football starts to Ramp up and everybody goes to sleep on The NBA for a while then Christmas Happens everybody re-engages then they Go back to sleep and then playoffs Happen and then everybody wakes up again Right so this is the NBA's attempt and I Think it's a good attempt of saying hey
No let's make these November December Games Before Christmas matter a little Bit more let's hopefully solve some of These load management issues here's my Thing it's something different I would Like to see I like that they're making Regular season games matter I would like To see less regular season games but Short of that this is at least something Different and I think all of these Leagues in in Worlds where these RSN Networks are going away and everything's Going streaming and things are changing The game has to change to get a little Bit more attention from younger folks And I think this is a good start Yeah I think the in season tournament I Think is different it'll be fun the Thing about the regular season games the Fact that they matter here the fact that You're not stepping to the side so now You have something different okay They're not going to matter towards our Seating in the playoffs but we'd have to Step to the side and then try to Separately win a certain a separate Tournament no I'm glad that this thing Is actually counting towards the regular Season I think what will set the success Of this up well is if one a team that is Not your elite team makes it to the Vegas tournament like a sneak team if I'm looking here like a Pacers like a Hornets I mean you know the Hornets
Typically just the style of play that Where they're offensively trying to move The basketball a lot and get up and down The floor very quickly they've tended to Start the season well Um it's it's really as the season drags On that they that they sort of relent And you know so I think that they could Actually get off to a a good start and Make some waves in this tournament now They're grew they're with the Milwaukee Bucks the New York Knicks the Miami Heat The Wizards the and and the Hornets are In this group uh for these the Eastern Conference Group B I saw Sports Illustrated uh James plower I call it The group of death which is sort of a Soccer moniker for the group that you Don't want to be in But I kind of disagree a little bit I Mean maybe just like in a vacuum you Don't want to play bucks the Knicks may Add somebody the Heat or the raining Eastern Conference champions but I think All these teams are pretty decent Matchups for for the Hornets they beat The Bucks last year Um they're pretty cool yeah yeah like They've got a good one against Miami now Will they have Dame Lillard you know Let's have to see about that and then The Wizards are just a disaster so I Think it's actually a decent group for Charlotte when you compare it to like
It's the 76ers and Cavs and group a Those are automatic losses for the Hornets they get trounced by the Celtics Gnats Raptors and Group C I definitely Don't want to be in group C Yeah I mean the top three are still Pretty tough I I wonder what Miami team We're going to see next year Milwaukee Is still going to be tough although yeah You're right the Charlotte Hornets it's Been a weird team to have success Against but they have had a few Victories against Milwaukee over the Years and different players if you have PJ now you got to resign PJ because PJ Has done well to put to put the clamps On Giannis a little bit That's right yes that's right we should Uh we should bring back PJ and also if Lamelo's healthy for that game lamello He's he's a Milwaukee killer and he's an Indiana killer I feel like the Midwest Teams he just don't mess with the man Like who are these guys nope I'm gonna Go for 30 and the game-winning floater Is still the most memorable shot for me Um against Milwaukee for lamello so yeah If he's playing then hopefully they'll Have a shot so the way this works there Are three groups at each conference the Group winners all move on and then You've got a wild card team From each of the conferences so it'll be You know four four teams in each
Conference advance to Vegas the other Thing that will set this thing up for Success is if Vegas is like super fun And a great television event you know if They can make that a social media event If they can make that a television event If it's full of spectacle and fun stuff And weird stuff get a little weird the NBA should not be afraid to get weird in Vegas for this NBA cup and if they do That then I I think uh this thing can Can be a lot I mean I I think they've Made some decent improvements to All-Star Weekend uh and they can use Some of that info to guide them in this NBA cup and just get weird in Vegas That's all I'm asking me just get weird Yeah Doug has been talking about getting Word for quite a while now all right That'll do it thanks for making lockdown Horn it's your first listen we're free And available anywhere you get your pods Just like game to game NBA make that Your second list and they cover every Game from across the league with local Analysis that only lockdown can deliver And you can follow of that as well Anywhere you get your podcast check out Everyone it's box score Doug substack Everyone it's boxcore.com listen to me On WFNZ every weekday from 12 to 3 P.M We'll be back to talk more summer league I'm already Bailey takes Nick Smith Jr Takes and of course all the James Naji
Takes yes we will continue to talk about Summer league tomorrow have a great rest Of your day
The Pros and Cons of Living in Charlotte, North Carolina
Events, Life, Sports, Weather, News
With an exciting entertainment scene that features everything from booming music venues to high-profile sports games, a slew of renowned restaurants, breweries and wine bars and a premier shopping area, Charlotte offers residents something new every day. The city also provides an array of outdoor opportunities, with 35 miles of greenways and proximity to the beach and mountains.
For sports fans, Charlotte is the place to be. Packed stadiums, courts and fields rumble with the thunder of applause year-round as athletes battle for their team’s glory. The Charlotte Hornets, formerly known as the Bobcats, play in the NBA and are owned by Michael Jordan. The Carolina Panthers, a professional football team that calls the city home, plays in the NFL.
When it comes to weather, the city enjoys 218 days of sunshine a year on average. Summer temperatures rarely rise above 95 degrees, while winter lows hardly drop below 20. Despite the mild climate, there is a slight humidity that can cause discomfort on warmer days.
Despite the perks of living in Charlotte, there are some things that not everyone loves about it. The most obvious is the traffic. The city is car-centric with most of the action happening in Uptown, making it hard to get around without driving. This causes frequent traffic backups along I-74, I-77 and I-485. The other downside is the high cost of living. While it is still relatively inexpensive compared to other East Coast cities, the rising home prices and apartment rents have made this once affordable city slightly less attractive.