Season Predictions 2016
Current seeding: 6th
Projected seeding: 5th
With the return of C Al Jefferson from injury and the simultaneous acusition of SG Courtney Lee, the Hornets are arguably the 3rd best team in the East, and accordingly have been on a tear as of late. The reason why having these two players active is so important is that Jefferson is a dominant low-post presence, meaning he will need shooters, like Lee, to spread the floor in order to give him space to operate. But we know that Charlotte’s offense really starts and ends with the electric PG Kemba Walker, who is having a career year with 21.4 points per game. The defense, among others, features the versatile SF/SG Nicolas Batum, and of course the defensive-minded head coach Steve Clifford. With everything clicking, I'm bumping Charlotte up a spot here.
1st round: Miami Heat (5)
This is an incredibly close matchup that could easily go either way. I’d imagine Charlotte attempting to win this one by out-shooting Miami, who is an average three-point team at best, using Walker as a facilitator and Jefferson to collapse the defense. This would give room for guys like Lee, SG Jeremy Lamb, and PF/C Frank Kaminsky to shoot, while still allowing the stars in Walker and Jefferson to make magic if necessary. The only problem is that this “drive, draw, dish” method gets really tough when you’re going against tough interior defense, and Miami C Hassan Whiteside is averaging 4 blocks per game. The reason why things can get tough for the Hornets offense under this approach is that if Walker were to drive, say, and use his quickness to get by Heat PG Goran Dragic, he’d have to meet Whiteside at the rim every time -- not a good gameplan by any means. If they want to play through Jefferson, that would be even worse, as he would be the player that is directly guarded by Whiteside. If Whiteside can do a lot to handle Walker and Jefferson, then Miami won’t need to bring extra defenders to them, which would be leaving shooters open, if you follow. Am I giving the Heat center too much credit? You could argue that, but the Heat have PF Chris Bosh and other solid interior defenders as well. If Miami’s interior defense holds up, and SG Dwyane Wade and others lead the way on offense, I think it will be difficult for Charlotte to outscore their counterparts, “third best team in the East [behind just Cleveland and Toronto]” or not.
Prediction: Miami wins, 4-2
Current seeding: 6th
Projected seeding: 5th
With the return of C Al Jefferson from injury and the simultaneous acusition of SG Courtney Lee, the Hornets are arguably the 3rd best team in the East, and accordingly have been on a tear as of late. The reason why having these two players active is so important is that Jefferson is a dominant low-post presence, meaning he will need shooters, like Lee, to spread the floor in order to give him space to operate. But we know that Charlotte’s offense really starts and ends with the electric PG Kemba Walker, who is having a career year with 21.4 points per game. The defense, among others, features the versatile SF/SG Nicolas Batum, and of course the defensive-minded head coach Steve Clifford. With everything clicking, I'm bumping Charlotte up a spot here.
1st round: Miami Heat (5)
This is an incredibly close matchup that could easily go either way. I’d imagine Charlotte attempting to win this one by out-shooting Miami, who is an average three-point team at best, using Walker as a facilitator and Jefferson to collapse the defense. This would give room for guys like Lee, SG Jeremy Lamb, and PF/C Frank Kaminsky to shoot, while still allowing the stars in Walker and Jefferson to make magic if necessary. The only problem is that this “drive, draw, dish” method gets really tough when you’re going against tough interior defense, and Miami C Hassan Whiteside is averaging 4 blocks per game. The reason why things can get tough for the Hornets offense under this approach is that if Walker were to drive, say, and use his quickness to get by Heat PG Goran Dragic, he’d have to meet Whiteside at the rim every time -- not a good gameplan by any means. If they want to play through Jefferson, that would be even worse, as he would be the player that is directly guarded by Whiteside. If Whiteside can do a lot to handle Walker and Jefferson, then Miami won’t need to bring extra defenders to them, which would be leaving shooters open, if you follow. Am I giving the Heat center too much credit? You could argue that, but the Heat have PF Chris Bosh and other solid interior defenders as well. If Miami’s interior defense holds up, and SG Dwyane Wade and others lead the way on offense, I think it will be difficult for Charlotte to outscore their counterparts, “third best team in the East [behind just Cleveland and Toronto]” or not.
Prediction: Miami wins, 4-2