Player Grades | Part 1

What Went Right, What Went Wrong

Apr 10, 2023

The 2022-23 season for the Charlotte Hornets couldn’t have ended sooner for most fans. The team finished with a 27-55 record and sights have been shifted to the NBA Draft Lottery.1

Having said that, reflecting on the season and noticing how players have performed is always good practice. I’m going to take a look at some of the “prominent”2 players on the Hornets, what they did well, and what they could’ve improved upon.

Instead of handing out letter grades, I have composed my own scale for measuring the performances of these players:

EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS3
MET EXPECTATIONS
FAILED TO MEET EXPECTATIONS
INCOMPLETE

LaMelo Ball

LaMelo Ball is the engine that makes this Charlotte offense run. Without him, the team was mostly feeble. Compared to when he was sitting, he added 5.7 points per 100 possessions on the offensive side.4 He flies around, makes passes only a few can make, and has extended his range on his shot every season. He shot 21 of 54 on three-point attempts of 30 feet or longer.5 He's also doing the bulk of his long-distance shooting without the aid of others.6

An area of LaMelo’s game that has a mixture of both good and bad is his ability to drive and get downhill. Ball averages the most drives per game on the team and with this, he’s able to collapse the defense and create open shots for teammates. Following a drive, Ball has a formidable 12.5 assist percentage. Where you aren’t getting much of an effect is turning drives into baskets or drawing fouls. The percentage of rim attempts has gone down sizably in every season that he’s played.7 And uncoincidentally, the rate of fouls drawn has dropped too.

Because of his talents and rare skills, Ball should be the biggest impact player on this team. Although, it’s hard to have that influence when he only played in 44% of the games in 2022-23.

GRADE: INCOMPLETE

Gordon Hayward

At the age of 33, Gordon Hayward still makes his imprint on the court. Staying healthy is a completely different conversation and it’s shame he hasn’t been able to put together a season of at least 60 games while in Charlotte.8

Hayward is a known commodity and there’s nothing that should surprise you with his play anymore. His veteran presence between the lines is greatly needed for such a young team. When the game gets hectic and turnovers start to pile up, his calming demeanor in the half-court settles things down. He’s often used as a mismatch-beater through his screening around the elbow because of his size.

One of the more interesting developments was his ability to finish around the rim at a career-best rate.9 He's not an explosive athlete by any stretch of the imagination and has to turn to his craft to get the needed separation. The strength that he possesses is often understated and is used to shield his opponent right before he goes up.

The same size that helps him on offense is showing up defensively. He’s been underrated on this end of the court10 and often it’s the "compete level" in fighting over screens or getting down in a stance that goes the longest way.

While not uncommon, his unavailability is still disappointing. Between his ankles, hamstring, and a misdiagnosed shoulder injury, he’s seen it all. Additionally, his lack of three-point efficiency was sorely missed because others also took dips in that department.

GRADE: MET EXPECTATIONS

Théo Maledon

It’s hard to fully judge Théo Maledon’s season because of the expectations that come with a two-way contract. With all the injuries, there were points in the season when you actually had hoped Charlotte would’ve recalled him from Greensboro.11 Maledon was a relatively inefficient player from the floor but he was always looking to set his teammates up.

You obviously lose some juice when turning to Maledon to run the offense, but he was very serviceable as the third point. He could run the pick-and-roll and find his teammates on dives to the basket or for cross-court passes to the corner. Without a doubt, this was his biggest strength on the court. One of the underrated aspects of his game was the ability to drive, not shy away from contact, and draw fouls. Of the players that played 800+ minutes for the Hornets, his two-point shooting foul-drawn rate of 17.3% was third on the team.

The most glaring shortcoming was his shooting. He converted on just 45% of his two-point attempts and 30% of his threes. Developing a semblance of a shot will go a long way in accentuating his playmaking ability. If not, teams will find ways to take away his passing creation.

GRADE: MET EXPECTATIONS

Kelly Oubre Jr.

In the midst of a disappointing season, Kelly Oubre’s spirits always seem to be positive. So much so, he was the recipient of the “Rick Bonnell Award” for his professionalism towards the media. Outside of that, Oubre saw some improvements with his shot profile and on the defensive end. While you mostly know what you’re getting out of Oubre, there were still reasons to sing his praises.

Let’s start with the negatives before highlighting some of his developments. Outside of scoring, Oubre still offers very little on the offensive side of the court and if he’s not hitting his three-pointer, he’s even less useful.12 He's not going to break down a defense on the second side to set up his teammates if he's run off the line. Coaches aren't finding creative ways to use him as a roll-man or through action in the short corner. His offensive game is somewhat predictable. On the other end, while there have been improvements, he still gets beat off-ball. His attention to detail is not always there when he isn't guarding the ball.

Having said all that, Oubre made several developments that were a pleasant sight to watch. Chiefly, he transformed his shot profile and became more aggressive in getting into the paint.13 His dribble drives increased from 3.6 to 7.2 per game. Also baked into those numbers are possessions where he played as the ball-handler out of the pick-and-roll — something that wasn't a part of his game last season.14

Despite the occasional breakdown on defense, his steals on the ball and deflections in passing lanes were a pronounced improvement. Oubre registered a 2.1 steal percentage and accumulated 154 deflections.15

Oubre is a free agent this offseason but has publically made it clear that he wants to remain in Charlotte.

GRADE: EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS

Nick Richards

Nick Richards’s story has been a fascinating one and his play this season secured him a multi-year extension.16 Much to the chagrin of Mark Williams’ supporters, he came into the start of the season as the clear-cut backup center. The praise that he received behind closed doors from Steve Clifford manifested itself on the court in many ways.

The biggest area in which Richards shined was through his defined role as a pick-and-roll big. He uses his big frame to create space and get downhill. He’s not an explosive leaper and lob threat but always gave the ball-handler enough of a radius to throw the ball. He was Charlotte’s most efficient player out of the pick-and-roll, scoring 1.33 points per possession.

Having said that, Richards was the biggest culprit of illegal screens on the roster. He committed 31 non-charge offensive fouls according to pbpstats.com.17 He’s not the most nimble-footed and really needs to have all things set up perfectly before the ball-handler makes his move. This also makes it hard for him to flip screens at the last second, something that is useful in preventing defenses from shading to one side of the action.

If he wasn’t involved in screening, Richards also was getting points on offensive boards and putbacks. The same frame that gets him into trouble for illegal screen-setting, helps him snag boards off missed shots. Just as importantly, he was relentless in getting positioning down-low and never gave up on possessions. It’s this type of unteachable energy that is infectious and shows up in ways other than the box score.

GRADE: EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS

🐝 Thanks so much for reading and supporting the podcast. Part 2 of 2 will be out on Thursday for Buzz Beat+ subscribers and Friday for everyone else!

The NBA Draft Lottery will be held on Tuesday, May 16 where the first 4 overall picks are randomly awarded and the remaining slots are sorted by team record.

I’m using an 800-minute minimum for my arbitrary threshold.

You are probably wondering, “Whose expectations?” Mostly mine, but also what should be expected of players based on draft position, role, experience in the league, previous seasons, etc.

This number marks the highest on the team in 2022-23 and surpasses his personal on/off difference from last season by a considerable margin.

These attempts are the 5th most in the league despite only playing in 36 games. He’s also shooting the highest percentage of anyone that has shot 30+ from 30 feet.

Ball is 2nd on Charlotte with 150 unassisted points on long-distance shots (Rozier is 1st but has played close to 30 more games).

Ball attempted 20.7% of his field goals at the rim in 2022-23 (25.1% in ‘21-22, 35.6% in ‘20-21).

Since signing his four-year contract in 2020, Hayward played in most games in Charlotte with 50. He played in 44 and 49 in his first two seasons.

Hayward finished on 73/100 shots within 4 feet of the rim. Yes, he only played in 50 games but the sample size is large enough to highlight this aspect of his game.

Hayward has the 2nd-best Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus on the roster.

Maledon missed a big chunk of time with Charlotte in the middle of the season from January through March. Just remember, 50 games is the limit with the parent club before it has to be converted to a standard contract.

Oubre has a measly 5.6 assist percentage and shot just 32% from the three-point range in 2022-23.

Oubre averaged a career-high 6.7 rim attempts per 75 possessions.

For possessions with Oubre running the pick-and-roll as the ball-handler, he ran a total of 71 possession in 76 games in 2021-22. This season, he ran 170 possession in 48 games.

Oubre’s 3.2 deflections per game placed him in the top 10 in the NBA.

Richards, a 2020 2nd-round draft pick, was set to become a free agent this offseason.

The next closest player on the roster, Mason Plumlee (now with the Clippers), committed just 16 of these foul types.