National Basketball Association

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Charlotte Hornets Season Preview

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Dec 15, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) drives on Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba Walker (15) during the fourth quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs beat the Hornets 97-88. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Cavaliers will face an upstart, hungry Charlotte Hornets team desperate to prove their worth in the Eastern Conference.

Michael Jordan‘s Charlotte Hornets turned a corner last season and reached the playoffs thanks to the young, emerging talent that is Kemba Walker. For their encore, they’ll try to snatch home court in the Eastern Conference Playoffs and challenge the Cleveland Cavaliers for a spot in The Finals.

Once a basketball wasteland occupied by the lowly Bobcats, Charlotte has experienced a renaissance the past two years and, thanks to some smart drafting, timely free agent acquisitions and opportunistic trades, it appears they’re not going anywhere any time soon.

The Cavaliers took the season series from the Hornets last year, 3-1. In their first meeting, the Cavs emerged victorious 95-90. The game was close throughout with the Hornets holding a four point lead going into the fourth quarter before the Cavs rallied in the final frame for the win.

Upcoming Schedule

The second meeting between these two teams was, for lack of a better word, strange. I remember watching this game and it stands out for it’s absurdity. Kemba Walker, the Hornets best player didn’t play. After two quarters, the Cavs held a nine-point lead and it appeared as if they were on their way to an easy win against a team playing without their leader.

I still remember watching in disbelief as the Hornets came out of the locker room on fire. They outscored the Cavs 33-17 in the third quarter, taking a seven-point lead into the deciding quarter. Jeremy Lin was attacking the rim at will and causing all sorts of problems for the Cavs defense. On the other end, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, the Hornets young, athletically gifted forward, went toe-to-toe with LeBron James, limiting his opportunities, and thus strangling the Cavs offense. The Hornets, led by Lin, only padded their lead in the final quarter, eventually winning by a score of 106-97.

LeBron and Co. played their next two games against this feisty, up-and-coming Hornets squad at home, in Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs won both games. Coach Tyronn Lue had the offense clicking in these games as the team averaged 113 points per game and won by an average margin of 10 points.

Throughout the season series, Walker proved that he’s a problem. In the three games he played, he averaged 22.3 points, 5.7 assists and 4.0 rebounds on 45.8 percent shooting from the field. He’s the type of player who creates problems for Kyrie Irving because of his attacking mindset and ability to get to the rim at will.

The Hornets are counting on continued internal growth from Walker along with the rest of their roster in order to take the next step toward contending in the Eastern Conference.

Apr 14, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) posts up against Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat (4) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Charlotte Hornets Roster Turnover

Key Acquisitions: Marco Belinelli, Ramon Sessions, Roy Hibbert, Christian Wood, Mike Tobey, Treveon Graham
Key Losses: Troy Daniels, Al Jefferson, Courtney Lee, Jeremy Lin

Give the Hornets front office some credit. General Manager Rich Cho recognized that Charlotte isn’t exactly a free-agent destination, and so he went into the offseason with a clear priority: re-sign Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams, two productive starters who were crucial to their success last season. Cho did just that, even getting Batum on a below-market deal that many considered a bargain.

For comparison’s sake, the Raptors’ Demar DeRozan inked a deal that will pay him $139 million over the next five years. Batum could’ve taken that same deal however, he chose to take less to help the team sign some complementary players.

One such player is Roy Hibbert. There was a time when Hibbert was one of the most valuable assets in the league. He was the defensive linchpin of those upstart Pacers teams that could never get by LeBron’s Miami Heat. He was praised for his “verticality,” the ability to contest shots at the rim without fouling.

Unfortunately for Hibbert, teams figured out that his lateral quickness and foot speed were atrocious and began putting him in pick-and-roll after pick-and-roll, which pulled him away from the basket and forced him to defend much smaller, quicker players.

This past year, Hibbert was a supporting actor in the reality television show that was Kobe Bryant‘s Farewell Tour. The Lakers were an atrocity, winning only 21 games all year, the second lowest win total in franchise history.
For Hibbert, going from Byron Scott to Steve Clifford will be an immediate upgrade. Clifford is a defense-first coach who has routinely taken adequate defensive players and plugged them into his system to create a functional defensive unit.

Last year, the Hornets had the ninth best defense in the league by defensive rating. Their center for most of the season was Cody Zeller, a player not exactly known for his defensive prowess. With Hibbert, Clifford has a legitimate presence in the middle, who, if motivated and put in the right positions, can help their defense crack top five in the league.

The Hornets will also, hopefully, get a full season out of Kidd-Gilchrist. He played only seven games last year before re-injuring his shoulder and succumbing to surgery. Gilchrist will help alleviate concerns over losing Courtney Lee to free agency. After coming over from the Grizzlies, Lee slotted in next to Walker in the backcourt and played his trademark brand of tough, physical defense while spacing the floor on offense.

Kidd-Gilchrist isn’t anywhere close to Lee as a shooter but he has the ability to be one of the best defenders in the league. As a team, they were nearly seven points better defensively with him on the floor last season. In the seven games he played, they allowed only 96.5 points per game, a mark that would’ve ranked third in the league over the full season.

The only concern for the Hornets going into next season is their depth. The loss of Jeremy Lin will hurt. He served as their sixth man and off-the-bench creator last season and did an admirable job in that role. They signed Ramon Sessions and traded for Marco Belinelli to replace Lin’s offense but it remains to be seen if those two are up to the task.

The Hornets have a bonafide all-star in Kemba Walker. He’s their leader and is only going to get better in the next few years. In Kidd-Gilchrist, Batum and Williams, they have three versatile players, all 6′ 7″ or taller, capable of switching screens and wreaking havoc defensively. They have a coach who puts his players in the best possible positions to succeed and an owner with deep pockets who just wants to win.

Dec 15, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) drives on Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the fourth quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavs beat the Hornets 97-88. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Season Series

Game One: Hornets @ Cavs – Sunday, Nov. 13, 3:30 p.m. (FSOHIO)
Game Two: Hornets @ Cavs – Saturday, Dec. 10, 7:30 p.m. (FSOHIO)
Game Three: Cavs @ Hornets – Saturday, Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m. (FSOHIO)
Game Four: Cavs @ Hornets – Friday, Mar. 24, 7:00 p.m. (FSOHIO)

The Hornets are in a great position heading into this season. They’ve got a healthy mix of veterans and young players and, more importantly, their younger players got a taste of the playoffs last year in their seven game slugfest against the Miami Heat. They now know what it takes, not just to make it there but to win playoff games in hostile environments.

They have a unique blend of players that match up quite well with the Cavs. As mentioned already, Kemba Walker forces the issue on offense and ensures that his counterpart won’t take any plays off defensively. Kyrie Irving will have to be at the top of his game on that end when these two teams meet next year.

Coach Tyronn Lue could slide J.R. Smith or Iman Shumpert, when he’s in the game, onto Walker, but that leaves Irving on Kidd-Gilchrist. Kidd-Gilchrist has a four inch height advantage over Kyrie Irving and, while he’s not the most offensively gifted player in the league, he is a tenacious offensive rebounder who will feast on the glass if someone much smaller is forced to box him out.