When Steve Clifford took over as Charlotte Hornets coach the previous season, the team was already facing difficulties as it attempted to rebuild.
Not one of the 2021 draft picks—not even first-round picks Kai Jones and James Bouknight—has lived up to the hype. This situation presents a serious obstacle for the team because it does not have the appeal to draw in elite free agents.
“I remember we used to say all the time, ‘It gets late early in the NBA,’” Clifford said. “You bring a guy in who had been in college four years and he doesn’t play well in his first year, those guys would be gone.
“But you’re crazy to do that now because the guys are so young. Everything used to be, you drafted in performance. Now, you’re drafting by potential and it’s much, much harder. Younger players are not as ready to play, and it makes it harder on coaches, but it makes it much, much harder on management.”
Southeast Notes: Clifford, Windler, Houstan, Bagley, Vukcevic https://t.co/Bv8GhWHd7r pic.twitter.com/G5CKqPyKfV
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) March 24, 2024