2017 Charlotte Hornets

Written by Paul Banks of the Washington Times, David Kay and Peter Christian of the The Sports Bank. Send Paul an e-mail here: paulb05 AT hotmail DOT com.
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Charlotte Hornets (Last Year: 36-46)

2017-18 Projected Depth Chart:

C: Cody Zeller/Miles Plumlee

PF: Marvin Williams/Frank Kaminsky/*Johnny O’Bryant

SF: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist/Jeremy Lamb

SG: Nicolas Batum/Marco Belinelli/*Treveon Graham

PG: Kemba Walker/*Ramon Sessions/*Briante Weber

NBA Free Agents:

*PG-Ramon Sessions (TO)

*PG-Briante Weber (TO)

*SG-Treveon Graham (TO)

*PF-Johnny O’Bryant (TO)

PF-Christian Wood (UFA)

PG-Brian Roberts (UFA)

2017-18 Team Salary: Approximately $101.9 million

NBA Offseason Team Needs:

1. Get Creative: With pretty much no cap space available, the Hornets will need to get creative in trying to find ways to improve their roster. They have the 11th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft and should get a young piece to add to their roster, but they will have to wheel and deal via the the trade market in hopes of acquiring some talent who can turn this team into a playoff contender.

2. Backup Point Guard: Assuming Charlotte does not pick up the $6.3 million team option on Ramon Sessions and non-guaranteed contract of Briante Weber, the team will be searching for a backup to Kemba Walker.

3. Defensive Presence Inside: The current frontcourt players on the Hornets’ roster don’t provide much of a defensive presence inside. Charlotte should look to add a role player who can crash the glass and block shots at the rim. This could be addressed with the club’s first-round pick of the 2017 NFL Draft.