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While I don't think he'll start, I'll be interested in seeing how much of a role Ryan Kalkbrenner plays in the 2025-26 season. His positioning in drop coverage will be one of the deepest in the league, and his contests will resemble a former player that Charles Lee has coached.

One of the more pleasant surprises of SL was Liam McNeeley's ability to play with the ball in his hands. This was one of many occasions where he was tasked with making the right read following the PnR. After collapsing the defense, he makes the skip pass to Walker Jr.

I asked Liam McNeeley about his comfort level with the ball in his hands during the rookie introductory press conference, and here's what he had to say:

📬 MAILBAG QUESTIONS | Please send any questions you have about the offseason, the upcoming season, or general Hornets inquiries! We will feature them on an upcoming Buzz Beat Podcast.

🎧 | If you missed our latest episode, we debated some of the more "detrimental" roster mistakes since 2020. Feedback is appreciated! LISTEN: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mis…

✍️ NEW | Dissecting Las Vegas Summer League clips to highlight common movements within Charlotte's offense. This piece has videos that show how the play unfolds, but it is also a good reference for terminology. READ: open.substack.com/pub/buzzbeat/p…

Richie and the Buzz Beat Podcast gang are killing it with their words and videos. Subscribe!

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LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller have only played 828 minutes together in their career. Last season, when the two of them were on the court together (457 min.), the team scored 118.1 points per 100 possessions. That ranked first among any two-man combo on the Hornets.

Grant Williams | Steals (2024-25) Williams is the ultimate glue guy for the Hornets. He uses his body effectively when fighting through screens and guarding ballhandlers closely. His physicality and hustle contribute to steals, loose balls, and drawing charges.

Moussa Diabaté | Defensive Versatility Diabaté is a tireless worker! Because he's got the ability to guard multiple positions and body types, it makes him versatile in the way Charlotte can defend PnRs. DRTG (ON): 113.2 DRTG (OFF): 118.5 NET: -5.3 (90th percentile)

I was very impressed with Chris Jent during summer Summer League and not just because the Hornets won the championship. He carried himself well. He coached with Mike Brown in Cleveland.

NEW (60 min) | 📬 August Mailbag: Part 1 - Does Nick Smith Jr. make the roster? - Kalkbrenner over Plumlee? - Bradon Miller's second-year dip - Can Ball contribute to winning basketball? LISTEN: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/aug…

Still a work in progress but my wife is painting a backdrop for our Buzz Beat Podcast recordings.

“I do think [LaMelo Ball’s] style is much more high-risk, high-reward. He's got to be willing to adjust to playing off-ball, which he has shown that he is a guy that is very good in catch-and-shoot situations.” - Richie 🗣️ From August Mailbag podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/buz…

According to Richie's skill-based achetypes, the Hornets signed the fifth-best primary creator (Dinwiddie) and the second-best secondary creator (Mann) on the market. (ℹ️ This tab within our shared data document has been available to our Buzz Beat+ subscribers since May)

Charlotte Hornets assistant Chris Jent is finalizing a deal to become the associate head coach of the New York Knicks under Mike Brown, sources tell ESPN. New York and Tyler Glass of CSE Talent negotiated terms for Jent, who returns to Knicks where he spent 1996-97 as a player.