Category: Charlotte Hornets Blog

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Hornets exercise contract options on PJ Washington and Miles Bridges

The Charlotte Hornets have exercised their third-year option on forward PJ Washington and fourth-year option on forward Miles Bridges.

Washington enters his second NBA season after appearing in 58 games (57 starts) during his rookie campaign in 2019-20. The Kentucky product averaged 12.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 30.3 minutes per game. Washington shot 45.5% from the field overall including 37.4% from beyond-the-arc. The 12th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft set a rookie NBA record for three-point field goals made in a debut with seven total vs. Chicago on Oct. 23, 2019. The 6-7 forward started for the Hornets all season and garnered 2019-20 All-Rookie Second Team honors for the season.

Bridges is in his third NBA season after appearing in 145 games (89 starts) in his first two years. Bridges upped his averaged from 7.5 points in his rookie campaign to 13.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 30.7 minutes per game in his second year. Bridges totaled 20 points, five rebounds and five assists during the 2020 Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend in Chicago. The Michigan State product was originally acquired by the Hornets in a draft-night trade after being selected with the 12th pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Hornets waive Keandre Cook, Javin DeLaurier, Xavier Sneed and Kahlil Whitney

The Charlotte Hornets have waived guard Keandre Cook, forward Javin DeLaurier, forward Xavier Sneed and forward Kahlil Whitney.

Cook (6-5, 187) went undrafted in the 2020 NBA Draft after two seasons at Missouri State University. The Baltimore native appeared in 33 games during his senior season, averaging 14.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 32.1 minutes per game to earn All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team honors. He appeared in one preseason game for the Hornets.

DeLaurier (6-10, 237) played four years at Duke University, averaging 3.4 points and 3.8 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per game in 114 career contents. The Shipman, Virginia native went undrafted and appeared in one preseason game for the Hornets.

Sneed (6-5, 220) made three appearances for the Hornets during the preseason, totaling six points and four rebounds in 15 minutes. The St. Louis native went undrafted after a decorated career at Kansas State University. He appeared in 32 games and averaged 14.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.8 steals and 1.7 assists in 32.5 minutes per game as a senior, earning All-Big 12 honorable mention accolades.

Whitney (6-6, 210) played collegiately for the University of Kentucky. The Chicago native went undrafted after averaging 3.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in 12.8 minutes in 18 games for the Wildcats. A heralded recruit out of high school, Whitney was a 2019 McDonald’s All-American and participant in the 2019 Jordan Brand Classic. He appeared in one preseason game for the Hornets.

After waiving Cook, DeLaurier, Sneed and Whitney, the Hornets roster stands at 16 players.

Hornets hire Sam Farber as new radio play-by-play broadcaster

The Charlotte Hornets have hired Sam Farber as the team’s new radio play-by-play broadcaster.

“We are pleased to welcome Sam and his family to Charlotte,” said Hornets President & Vice Chairman Fred Whitfield. “He is a talented, young broadcaster who we feel will be a fantastic addition to our organization. We believe our fans will enjoy listening to him call our games and hearing his perspective across our digital platforms. We look forward to having him as part of our Hornets family.”

“I am incredibly excited to join the Hornets organization,” Farber said. “It is an honor to have the opportunity to be part of a great franchise with a passionate fan base. I cannot wait to get to Charlotte and begin to connect with the team and our fans, and along with my wife, Lauren, and our two kids, we look forward to building our lives in this incredible community.”

Per the team, “Farber comes to Charlotte from Southern California and brings a wide variety of broadcasting experience to the Hornets. He regularly calls play-by-play for college basketball, college baseball and high school football for both ESPN and FOX Sports West/Prime Ticket. Farber also serves as a Game Break Update anchor for college football games on FOX and FOX Sports 1, as well as the halftime and postgame host for University of Southern California football. Additionally, he has been a play-by-play announcer for the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League on Spectrum SportsNet since 2016. From 2014-2016, Farber was the pregame host for the Los Angeles Clippers flagship station, The Beast 980, where he also was an anchor, reporter and host.”

Hornets sign Grant Riller and Nate Darling to two-way contracts

The Charlotte Hornets have signed guards Grant Riller and Nate Darling to two-way contracts.

Drafted by the Hornets with the 56th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Riller averaged 18.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 132 career contests, while shooting .519 from the field, .356 from the three-point line and .796 from the free-throw line. The 6-3 guard earned All-Colonial Athletic Association First Team honors in each of his last three seasons at College of Charleston, after being named to the CAA All-Rookie Team in 2016-17. He recorded 64 games with 20 points or more and 14 games with 30 points or more. During his senior year, he scored a school single-game NCAA Division I record 43 points against Hofstra and recorded the first triple-double in school history with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Northeastern.

An undrafted free agent out of Delaware, Darling averaged 21.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 38.2 minutes per game in 32 appearances (all starts) for the Blue Hens. The 6-5 guard was named to the All-CAA First Team after leading the conference in minutes per game, three-point field goals (107) and three-point field goal percentage (.399). The Nova Scotia native averaged 11.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 25.6 minutes per game in his career which spanned time at both Alabama-Birmingham and Delaware.

Hornets sign rookie center Vernon Carey Jr.

The Charlotte Hornets have signed center Vernon Carey Jr.

Drafted by the Hornets with the 32nd overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, the 6-10 Carey played one season at Duke, where he was named USBWA Freshman of the Year and ACC Rookie of the Year, while earning Consensus All-American Second Team, All-ACC First Team and ACC All-Freshman Team honors. Carey averaged 17.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 1.6 blocks, and 1.0 assists in 24.9 minutes per game, while shooting .577 from the field, including .381 from three-point range. The Miami, Florida, native led the ACC in field goal percentage and ranked third in scoring, fourth in rebounding and sixth in blocks, making him the only player in the conference to rank in the top 10 in each of those categories.

Hornets re-sign center Bismack Biyombo

The Charlotte Hornets have re-signed center Bismack Biyombo.

The Hornets originally acquired Biyombo in a three-team trade with the Orlando Magic and Chicago Bulls on July 8, 2018.

According to the Charlotte Observer, Biyombo “will provide needed depth at the position, and increased his role as a mentor to some of the team’s young players last season.”

Biyombo, listed at 6-foot-9, appeared in 53 games, including 29 starts, during the 2019-20 season for Charlotte. He averaged a career-high 7.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 0.9 blocked shots in 19.4 minutes per game. Biyombo recorded double-digit scoring 22 times last season, including eight double-doubles.

The ninth-year veteran first began his NBA career with the Hornets after being selected by Sacramento in the first round (seventh overall) of the 2011 NBA Draft and sent to Charlotte in a draft night trade. Biyombo has appeared in 636 career NBA regular season games (271 starts) with Charlotte, the Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic, averaging 5.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 20.2 minutes per game, while shooting .520 (1232-2367) from the floor. He has also played in 23 career NBA playoff contests (11 starts), averaging 5.7 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 24.1 minutes per game.

Biyombo, who played for Charlotte from 2011-14 and 2018 to present, stands third in Hornets history in career blocks (533), fifth in career offensive rebounds (772) and ninth in total rebounds (2,278).

Charlotte Hornets will play home games without fans for start of 2020-21 NBA season

STATEMENT FROM THE CHARLOTTE HORNETS

With health and safety as our top priority, the Charlotte Hornets, in consultation with state and local government officials, have determined that home games at Spectrum Center will be held without fans when the 2020-21 NBA season begins.

We will continue to work with state and local health officials, as well as the NBA, to develop a plan that will allow fans to return to Spectrum Center in both a safe and timely manner. We are optimistic that conditions will improve in the coming months and hope to be able to have fans in attendance later in the season.

In the meantime, we will continue to implement enhanced safety procedures and will share additional information on these measures as we get closer to having fans return to Spectrum Center.

Hornets waive Ray Spalding

The Charlotte Hornets have waived forward Ray Spalding.

Spalding originally signed a two-way contract with the Hornets on January 15, 2020.

Spalding appeared in 16 games (six starts) for the Greensboro Swarm in the 2019-20 NBA G League season averaging 12.0 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 24.7 minutes per game. Spalding was originally drafted with the 56th overall selection in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. Spalding was traded on draft night to the Dallas Mavericks and has spent time with the Mavericks and Suns prior to joining the Hornets.

Hornets waive Nicolas Batum

The Charlotte Hornets have waived forward Nicolas Batum.

Charlotte originally acquired Batum from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for guard Gerald Henderson and forward Noah Vonleh on June 24, 2015.

Batum appeared in 22 games with the Hornets during the 2019-20 season, including three starts, averaging 3.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 23.0 minutes per game. The 25th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, Batum has appeared in 789 career games (714 starts), averaging 11.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists over twelve NBA seasons. He has seen action in 39 total playoff games (29 starts) with averages of 10.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists, including five playoff games with Charlotte in 2015-16. The Lisseux, France product ranks fifth in Charlotte franchise history in three-point field goals made (496) and seventh in assists (1,521).

Hornets and Gordon Hayward reportedly agree to contract

The Celtics are losing one of their key contributors to the Hornets in free agency. Here’s Boston.com:

The Celtics lost Gordon Hayward to the Hornets on Saturday, as the small forward reportedly agreed to a four-year, $120 million deal with Charlotte.

Even though Hayward spent much of his three seasons in Boston missing time due to injuries, his departure is still a hit to the team. After struggling to regain his All-Star form in the 2018-19 season, Hayward bounced back this past year. He averaged 17.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game, showing some signs of the player he was prior to the gruesome ankle injury he suffered in his first game as Celtic…

While Hayward’s $34.2 million max salary is off the books, the Celtics don’t gain another max slot with him leaving. Moreover, the Celtics are currently over the $109.1 salary cap for next season. The Celtics’ salary for next season currently sits at $109.28 million, which includes the cap holds of first-round draft picks Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard as well as restricted free agents Tacko Fall and Tremont Waters.