Welcome to the Hornets Podcast, presented by Charlotte I ear Nosen Throat Associates, the official I ear Nosen throatcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Here's your host, Rob Longo.

Welcome to the Hornets Podcast, presented by Charlotte I ear Nosen Throat Associates, the official I ear Nosen throatcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Here's your host, Rob Longo.

Hi friends, Welcome to today's episode of the hornetsove Cast, the official podcast of the Charlotte Hornets, brought to you by SENTA Charlotte, ie ear Noos and Throat Associates, the official iearos and third care provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Roblonga with you today on what is unfortunately yet again a silver linings edition of the HC Hornets fall in Detroit on Friday ninety eight to ninety four, ninth consecutive loss for the Hornets, now seven and twenty six on the season, so the calendar flipp into twenty twenty five didn't provide the Hornets any luck. Charlotte had a lead in this one at halftime faltered down the stretch. We'll discuss what went wrong for the Hornets, provide you with our silver lining selections, and we will also take a little bit of time off here on the weekend and we will have a game preview of the Hornets taken on the Cavs on Sunday, So if you're listening to this on Saturday, we already got your game preview set for tomorrow. If you're listening to this on Sunday, we'll have your game preview in segment three. And helping me out with all these topics here today, the one and only host of Hornets Post Game on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ, Will Polgic will thank you for joining me on this episode of the AGHC Happy New Year, Although if you subscribe to the Larry David school of thought, I guess I'm a day late on wishing you Happy New Year because we're not allowed to do that anymore.

Hi friends, Welcome to today's episode of the hornetsove Cast, the official podcast of the Charlotte Hornets, brought to you by SENTA Charlotte, ie ear Noos and Throat Associates, the official iearos and third care provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Roblonga with you today on what is unfortunately yet again a silver linings edition of the HC Hornets fall in Detroit on Friday ninety eight to ninety four, ninth consecutive loss for the Hornets, now seven and twenty six on the season, so the calendar flipp into twenty twenty five didn't provide the Hornets any luck. Charlotte had a lead in this one at halftime faltered down the stretch. We'll discuss what went wrong for the Hornets, provide you with our silver lining selections, and we will also take a little bit of time off here on the weekend and we will have a game preview of the Hornets taken on the Cavs on Sunday, So if you're listening to this on Saturday, we already got your game preview set for tomorrow. If you're listening to this on Sunday, we'll have your game preview in segment three. And helping me out with all these topics here today, the one and only host of Hornets Post Game on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ, Will Polgic will thank you for joining me on this episode of the AGHC Happy New Year, Although if you subscribe to the Larry David school of thought, I guess I'm a day late on wishing you Happy New Year because we're not allowed to do that anymore.

You know, it was Chris McClain on the Mac and Bone Show on our flagship WUFNZ who had a running gag going of saying Happy New Year to basically every guest that came on the radio station, and he would do it for a period of time that was uncomfortably long. We were into April when he kept on saying Happy New Year before people started getting it. And I believe it was Ashley Stroline, our own from the Hornets Beat, who finally got onto it and basically he was doing it until somebody actually said something at least who wasn't in on the gag, because I got to it pretty quickly. And let's just say I hope he doesn't try it this year because it was annoying that it might be even more so now.

You know, it was Chris McClain on the Mac and Bone Show on our flagship WUFNZ who had a running gag going of saying Happy New Year to basically every guest that came on the radio station, and he would do it for a period of time that was uncomfortably long. We were into April when he kept on saying Happy New Year before people started getting it. And I believe it was Ashley Stroline, our own from the Hornets Beat, who finally got onto it and basically he was doing it until somebody actually said something at least who wasn't in on the gag, because I got to it pretty quickly. And let's just say I hope he doesn't try it this year because it was annoying that it might be even more so now.

That's gonna be hard to repeat year after years. So we'll see what Back ends up doing there on a morning show the next couple of weeks. But in the meantime, let's go ahead and recap this one last night in Detroit or Friday, depending on what you're listening to. This ninety eight to ninety four Hornets fall. Charlotte got off to a great start. They scored sixty five points in the first half. They led by thirteen going into the locker room. That was the largest lead for the Hornets. But in the second half, things just did not go the way of Charlotte. If you go back, you look at the stats in the first half, they're great, thirty one points in a first quarter, thirty four and a second you're getting that kind of that increase. They're going on and on, and then the Hornets are shooting fifty three to fifty four percent from the field, they're five to thirteen from three, they're getting to the free throw line, they're fourteen to twenty two at destroy But halftime everything looks really, really good, and then for whatever reason, the second half just does not look good. For lack of a better term, Hornets end up only scoring through quarters three and four a combined twenty nine points in the second half. And give credit whe credits due, Detroit did not do a good job in the fourth quarter either. Piston's only scored four fourteen points, Hornet scored twelve, so Detroit ended up winning that fourth frame. But all in all, neither team played a good fourth quarter. But in the second half in general, Charlotte just did not play well. They shot twenty seven percent from the field in the second half. They go four to seventeen from three, including an zero of eight clip in the fourth quarter alone, five to ten at the free throw line, which is the one that really stands out and the one that certainly hurts there, and end up being of course a minus seventeen across the board, getting out scored by seventeen points in that second half. So well, the biggest one, I think, two numbers wise, in that second half eleven turnovers in that second half. That really kind of derailed the Hornets after what looked like they were going to be on their way to snapping what at the time was in a game losing streak.

That's gonna be hard to repeat year after years. So we'll see what Back ends up doing there on a morning show the next couple of weeks. But in the meantime, let's go ahead and recap this one last night in Detroit or Friday, depending on what you're listening to. This ninety eight to ninety four Hornets fall. Charlotte got off to a great start. They scored sixty five points in the first half. They led by thirteen going into the locker room. That was the largest lead for the Hornets. But in the second half, things just did not go the way of Charlotte. If you go back, you look at the stats in the first half, they're great, thirty one points in a first quarter, thirty four and a second you're getting that kind of that increase. They're going on and on, and then the Hornets are shooting fifty three to fifty four percent from the field, they're five to thirteen from three, they're getting to the free throw line, they're fourteen to twenty two at destroy But halftime everything looks really, really good, and then for whatever reason, the second half just does not look good. For lack of a better term, Hornets end up only scoring through quarters three and four a combined twenty nine points in the second half. And give credit whe credits due, Detroit did not do a good job in the fourth quarter either. Piston's only scored four fourteen points, Hornet scored twelve, so Detroit ended up winning that fourth frame. But all in all, neither team played a good fourth quarter. But in the second half in general, Charlotte just did not play well. They shot twenty seven percent from the field in the second half. They go four to seventeen from three, including an zero of eight clip in the fourth quarter alone, five to ten at the free throw line, which is the one that really stands out and the one that certainly hurts there, and end up being of course a minus seventeen across the board, getting out scored by seventeen points in that second half. So well, the biggest one, I think, two numbers wise, in that second half eleven turnovers in that second half. That really kind of derailed the Hornets after what looked like they were going to be on their way to snapping what at the time was in a game losing streak.

Yeah, it's hard, rob because when you score a combined amount of points in one half that doesn't equal your top two scoring quarters in quarter one and quarter two. I think that tells the tail. This came down to the offensive efficiency kind of dropping off in the second half. But I also think too a Hornets created a lot of their own misfortune by the turnovers. The turnover margin actually wasn't as bad as the efficiency in the second half of lead you to believe the Hornets only turned it over three more times than the Pistons did, and the Pistons were a plus four in the points off turnover category. But the problem is when the Hornets didn't commit their turnovers, they had themselves lead by as many as thirteen, But then once they started giving Detroit more opportunities, they took total advantage. And I think that's kind of when the game flipped on its head a little bit and Detroit's shots started falling, the Hornet shots didn't fall, and then when Charlotte got more aggressive and tried to go to the free throw line. I mean, this is a game where, you know, I hate to say it like this, but you should not lose a game when you are plus seventeen in the free throw shooting department from an attempt standpoint, and they were plus eleven from the free throws that they actually made, but unfortunately down the stretch when the Hornets need to hit them, they ended up clanging them. And that's the part that I think a lot of it comes down to youth, a lot of it comes down to in experience, a lot of it comes down to having the roster being more shorthanded than the Hornts would like. But I think this is again part of what you know, Jeff Peterson and Charles Lee and anybody associated with the organization has really kind of preached over the course of not only the off season but going into the season, is that a lot of these younger players have to figure out how to win, and all of them have to kind of figure out how to win with each other. And it's tough sledding right now without Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball, and I think, you know, we all can kind of understand and contextualize that in the phase of where this unfortunate losing streak is sat. But I think the other part of this, too, is rob is that you know, unfortunately, there's got to come a time where it's got to come from these dudes. A lot of times. I know that LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller a lot of times have bailed this team out when they've needed it the most. But I think you have to at least give these guys opportunities to try and earned their way themselves. And Sam and I talked about it last night on the on the postgame show. You know a lot of times the execution of the plays has always been, you know, from the Horns perspective, unit if they don't hit the shot we're talking about, of course, the two opportunities in the game ending scenarios to try and get the Hornets. At one point, they were trying to go for a quick two, did not execute it, and they were trying to go for the three at the end. But Miles Bridge is taking a twenty eight foot three pointer in double coverage. It was obviously somewhat of a bus to play because kJ Simpson didn't handle it cleanly off the dribble handoff. So from that perspective, again, these guys have to all be contributors. And you know, whether it's you know, rookies, whether it's veteran players, I think everybody bears a bit of responsibility. And I know that, you know, a lot of these games can be chalked up to, hey, you know, if you had one more player, if you had two more players, maybe this thing goes the other way. But at the end of the day, the record is what it is, and right now, the Hornets struggling to try and get a consistent forty eight minutes on the floor.

Yeah, it's hard, rob because when you score a combined amount of points in one half that doesn't equal your top two scoring quarters in quarter one and quarter two. I think that tells the tail. This came down to the offensive efficiency kind of dropping off in the second half. But I also think too a Hornets created a lot of their own misfortune by the turnovers. The turnover margin actually wasn't as bad as the efficiency in the second half of lead you to believe the Hornets only turned it over three more times than the Pistons did, and the Pistons were a plus four in the points off turnover category. But the problem is when the Hornets didn't commit their turnovers, they had themselves lead by as many as thirteen, But then once they started giving Detroit more opportunities, they took total advantage. And I think that's kind of when the game flipped on its head a little bit and Detroit's shots started falling, the Hornet shots didn't fall, and then when Charlotte got more aggressive and tried to go to the free throw line. I mean, this is a game where, you know, I hate to say it like this, but you should not lose a game when you are plus seventeen in the free throw shooting department from an attempt standpoint, and they were plus eleven from the free throws that they actually made, but unfortunately down the stretch when the Hornets need to hit them, they ended up clanging them. And that's the part that I think a lot of it comes down to youth, a lot of it comes down to in experience, a lot of it comes down to having the roster being more shorthanded than the Hornts would like. But I think this is again part of what you know, Jeff Peterson and Charles Lee and anybody associated with the organization has really kind of preached over the course of not only the off season but going into the season, is that a lot of these younger players have to figure out how to win, and all of them have to kind of figure out how to win with each other. And it's tough sledding right now without Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball, and I think, you know, we all can kind of understand and contextualize that in the phase of where this unfortunate losing streak is sat. But I think the other part of this, too, is rob is that you know, unfortunately, there's got to come a time where it's got to come from these dudes. A lot of times. I know that LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller a lot of times have bailed this team out when they've needed it the most. But I think you have to at least give these guys opportunities to try and earned their way themselves. And Sam and I talked about it last night on the on the postgame show. You know a lot of times the execution of the plays has always been, you know, from the Horns perspective, unit if they don't hit the shot we're talking about, of course, the two opportunities in the game ending scenarios to try and get the Hornets. At one point, they were trying to go for a quick two, did not execute it, and they were trying to go for the three at the end. But Miles Bridge is taking a twenty eight foot three pointer in double coverage. It was obviously somewhat of a bus to play because kJ Simpson didn't handle it cleanly off the dribble handoff. So from that perspective, again, these guys have to all be contributors. And you know, whether it's you know, rookies, whether it's veteran players, I think everybody bears a bit of responsibility. And I know that, you know, a lot of these games can be chalked up to, hey, you know, if you had one more player, if you had two more players, maybe this thing goes the other way. But at the end of the day, the record is what it is, and right now, the Hornets struggling to try and get a consistent forty eight minutes on the floor.

One of those guys that took a lot of responsibility after the game was Miles Bridges. Here's what he had to say about his performance despite having a team high twenty points, just.

One of those guys that took a lot of responsibility after the game was Miles Bridges. Here's what he had to say about his performance despite having a team high twenty points, just.

Keeping our composure, including myself six turnovers, So I've put that maybe on me, but I think we did a good job just competing. But when they picked up that pressure in their physicality, we kind of back down a little bit. We can't do that at all, do it.

Keeping our composure, including myself six turnovers, So I've put that maybe on me, but I think we did a good job just competing. But when they picked up that pressure in their physicality, we kind of back down a little bit. We can't do that at all, do it.

So at least Miles is able to recognize what went wrong for the Hornets and recognize that he had one too many turnovers there as well, And if you go back and you look at the second half statistics, that's kind of the issue too. Miles had four of his six turnovers coming in that second half. He had fourteen points at halftime, he finishes with twenties. So again, a tough second half there from Miles Bridges. I get that their second half adjustments, and there's there's some things that go on in the locker room with the opposing team saying, all right, we're gonna blitz this guy, or we're gonna disguise our coverage is a little bit different defensively to throw them off. His game seemed to work for the Piston yesterday. Obviously it's gonna happen whenever the offense only scores twenty nine points there in the second half total for Charlotte, and the Pistons ended up pulling out a ninety eight to ninety four wins. So you're gonna have those adjustments throughout the course of the game, and you're gonna have those things to change. But it just felt like there were times in throughout the contest, especially in the second half, where the Hornets weren't able to adjust a little bit. I go back and I think of a play I want to say it was either in the third quarter or the fourth quarter, early fourth or late third where Mark Williams had the ball on the wing and he's dribbling the ball towards the timeline and creating a trap situation where he was trying to get the ball to Miles Bridges to run the set. And at that point, I'm thinking, well, why don't we just why doesn't Mark just kind of turn around and attack the basket a little bit more, or worst case, he gets pinned on the sideline and he throws it off someone's leg and they are able to get possession. It just seems like when things don't go one hundred percent according to plan, then there's not an escape patch, for lack of a better term, for some of the players on his team. I think a kJ Simpson where at the end of the game, he's out there in the finishing five, which is a huge opportunity for a young guy on a two way deal. That's a lot of trust in the coaching staff to have you out there. But there's a point where the Hornets are there's about fifteen seconds left in Charlotte's down three, so you can either go for the three to tie it, or you can try to get the quick two and kind of extend the game that way. kJ Simpson drives to the rim. That's great, but it wasn't a clean look. I mean, the shot got annihilated by Jalen Duran at the ten, so it didn't even have a prayer, and then it puts the Hornets in a tough situation. They did get another opportunity because there were two miss free throws by Detroit, so they got bailed out in that sense and they had a second chance, but at the same time, it doesn't give them any favors with the clock winding down and the game on the line. And again I get a lot of this is a learning curve and a learning moment for a lot of these young guys, But at some point you just got to look at the film and you got to come down to execution a little bit.

So at least Miles is able to recognize what went wrong for the Hornets and recognize that he had one too many turnovers there as well, And if you go back and you look at the second half statistics, that's kind of the issue too. Miles had four of his six turnovers coming in that second half. He had fourteen points at halftime, he finishes with twenties. So again, a tough second half there from Miles Bridges. I get that their second half adjustments, and there's there's some things that go on in the locker room with the opposing team saying, all right, we're gonna blitz this guy, or we're gonna disguise our coverage is a little bit different defensively to throw them off. His game seemed to work for the Piston yesterday. Obviously it's gonna happen whenever the offense only scores twenty nine points there in the second half total for Charlotte, and the Pistons ended up pulling out a ninety eight to ninety four wins. So you're gonna have those adjustments throughout the course of the game, and you're gonna have those things to change. But it just felt like there were times in throughout the contest, especially in the second half, where the Hornets weren't able to adjust a little bit. I go back and I think of a play I want to say it was either in the third quarter or the fourth quarter, early fourth or late third where Mark Williams had the ball on the wing and he's dribbling the ball towards the timeline and creating a trap situation where he was trying to get the ball to Miles Bridges to run the set. And at that point, I'm thinking, well, why don't we just why doesn't Mark just kind of turn around and attack the basket a little bit more, or worst case, he gets pinned on the sideline and he throws it off someone's leg and they are able to get possession. It just seems like when things don't go one hundred percent according to plan, then there's not an escape patch, for lack of a better term, for some of the players on his team. I think a kJ Simpson where at the end of the game, he's out there in the finishing five, which is a huge opportunity for a young guy on a two way deal. That's a lot of trust in the coaching staff to have you out there. But there's a point where the Hornets are there's about fifteen seconds left in Charlotte's down three, so you can either go for the three to tie it, or you can try to get the quick two and kind of extend the game that way. kJ Simpson drives to the rim. That's great, but it wasn't a clean look. I mean, the shot got annihilated by Jalen Duran at the ten, so it didn't even have a prayer, and then it puts the Hornets in a tough situation. They did get another opportunity because there were two miss free throws by Detroit, so they got bailed out in that sense and they had a second chance, but at the same time, it doesn't give them any favors with the clock winding down and the game on the line. And again I get a lot of this is a learning curve and a learning moment for a lot of these young guys, But at some point you just got to look at the film and you got to come down to execution a little bit.

Well. That's the other thing, too, Rob, is that I think one of the things that they did very well early was they played through the two big men. They played through Mark and they played through Nick very well, and they were efficient when doing so, not just in the pick and roll, but also finding those guys for opportunities. But if you we'll get the fourth quarter numbers. Richards only gets one free throw. Well, he gets only one field goal attempt off it was an and one that he ended up converting at the line for three points. Mark Williams made just one shot in the fourth quarter, but he attempted for including that three point that you referenced during the post game last night, which again we've seen Mark regardless of how early you are out there watching him and shoot around. They very much want Mark Williams to start taking and maybe even using the three point shot as part of his repertoire. This is something that's very much in the beta stage for Mark. It was something that they were working on with him, you know, in his second year last year, and fortunately he just didn't have enough time on the floor really for him to fully implement it. And now they're trying to at least get him to the point where they can start taking that shot in games. And fortunately it did not go. And I think unfortunately too, is that the Hornets, while they tried to go to Mark, maybe there was a bit of a crisis of confidence and they just stopped going to him after those couple of shots did not go. And that's the part of this that from the Hornets perspective you mentioned it perfectly, is that there doesn't ever seem to be when when you go through the entirety of the shot clock, that doesn't seem to be that escape patch round or that escape patch play. A lot of times that's you know, when La Melo ball's healthy, it's LaMelo taking a three point shot. And you know, there's a there's a termin pool that they call slop where, you know, if you hit a shot that you weren't necessarily supposed to be taking toward a particular pocket. A lot of times I call possessions where the Hornets just you know, will jack up a three at the end and end up getting a three. I call it almost kind of a slop possession. It gets your points, it counts all the same, but isn't exactly what the head coach or even the floor general drew up in a given moment. But the unfortunate part is when the Hornets are down a lot of their big players, the opportunities to get those kind of possessions somewhat goes by the wayside. And they aren't able to recover, particularly a lot of times when they have ended possessions or are one and done and not getting the REQ with its second chance point opportunities like it seemed the other side was getting another. Hornets did get a plus three in the second chance point category last night, but at the same point in time, they needed more of their primary opportunities to go through as well. Unfortunately they did not.

Well. That's the other thing, too, Rob, is that I think one of the things that they did very well early was they played through the two big men. They played through Mark and they played through Nick very well, and they were efficient when doing so, not just in the pick and roll, but also finding those guys for opportunities. But if you we'll get the fourth quarter numbers. Richards only gets one free throw. Well, he gets only one field goal attempt off it was an and one that he ended up converting at the line for three points. Mark Williams made just one shot in the fourth quarter, but he attempted for including that three point that you referenced during the post game last night, which again we've seen Mark regardless of how early you are out there watching him and shoot around. They very much want Mark Williams to start taking and maybe even using the three point shot as part of his repertoire. This is something that's very much in the beta stage for Mark. It was something that they were working on with him, you know, in his second year last year, and fortunately he just didn't have enough time on the floor really for him to fully implement it. And now they're trying to at least get him to the point where they can start taking that shot in games. And fortunately it did not go. And I think unfortunately too, is that the Hornets, while they tried to go to Mark, maybe there was a bit of a crisis of confidence and they just stopped going to him after those couple of shots did not go. And that's the part of this that from the Hornets perspective you mentioned it perfectly, is that there doesn't ever seem to be when when you go through the entirety of the shot clock, that doesn't seem to be that escape patch round or that escape patch play. A lot of times that's you know, when La Melo ball's healthy, it's LaMelo taking a three point shot. And you know, there's a there's a termin pool that they call slop where, you know, if you hit a shot that you weren't necessarily supposed to be taking toward a particular pocket. A lot of times I call possessions where the Hornets just you know, will jack up a three at the end and end up getting a three. I call it almost kind of a slop possession. It gets your points, it counts all the same, but isn't exactly what the head coach or even the floor general drew up in a given moment. But the unfortunate part is when the Hornets are down a lot of their big players, the opportunities to get those kind of possessions somewhat goes by the wayside. And they aren't able to recover, particularly a lot of times when they have ended possessions or are one and done and not getting the REQ with its second chance point opportunities like it seemed the other side was getting another. Hornets did get a plus three in the second chance point category last night, but at the same point in time, they needed more of their primary opportunities to go through as well. Unfortunately they did not.

Hornets drop a tough one in Detroit on Friday, ninety eight to ninety four your final tally. As Tobias Harris goes for a game high twenty four points. Four out of the five starters for the Pistons end up in double figures. Malik Beasley with twelve points off the bench as well, Miles Bridge's team high twenty Mark Ollias right behind with eighteen points, Nick Richards with ten points off the bench as well, a couple of other guys sprinkled in their bench did score thirty four points, but ultimately he got outscored thirty five to thirty four NAC category. So a couple of instances where we can pick and choose from our silver lining selections. There's a lot of nominees we'll provide you with ours next right after this here on a Hornets five cast. It's a silver linings edition of the HHC rob logo and the host of Hornets post game on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ. Of course, we'll polgic with you here on this episode of the HHC Hornets Fall Friday in Detroit ninety eight to ninety four, just ran over a couple of the significant numbers in the box score. Will with our silver lining selections to lead into this segment, and as the guest of honor, I will always let you select first. Who is your silver lining pick from the game on Friday.

Hornets drop a tough one in Detroit on Friday, ninety eight to ninety four your final tally. As Tobias Harris goes for a game high twenty four points. Four out of the five starters for the Pistons end up in double figures. Malik Beasley with twelve points off the bench as well, Miles Bridge's team high twenty Mark Ollias right behind with eighteen points, Nick Richards with ten points off the bench as well, a couple of other guys sprinkled in their bench did score thirty four points, but ultimately he got outscored thirty five to thirty four NAC category. So a couple of instances where we can pick and choose from our silver lining selections. There's a lot of nominees we'll provide you with ours next right after this here on a Hornets five cast. It's a silver linings edition of the HHC rob logo and the host of Hornets post game on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ. Of course, we'll polgic with you here on this episode of the HHC Hornets Fall Friday in Detroit ninety eight to ninety four, just ran over a couple of the significant numbers in the box score. Will with our silver lining selections to lead into this segment, and as the guest of honor, I will always let you select first. Who is your silver lining pick from the game on Friday.

Well, I spoke very lovingly about Mark Williams during the post game and even during the opening segment of this, so naturally I'm gonna go with Miles Bridges.

Well, I spoke very lovingly about Mark Williams during the post game and even during the opening segment of this, so naturally I'm gonna go with Miles Bridges.

Still two point three seconds left, Hornets lead it by ten. Cunningham throws up the floor, intercepted Miles Bridges three at the buzzer, got it, Miles Bridges trilling a Low's three point shot to send the Hornets to the locker room with a thirteen point lead, sixty five to fifty two. Miles Bridges cashing it in. He finishes with a game high fourteen.

Still two point three seconds left, Hornets lead it by ten. Cunningham throws up the floor, intercepted Miles Bridges three at the buzzer, got it, Miles Bridges trilling a Low's three point shot to send the Hornets to the locker room with a thirteen point lead, sixty five to fifty two. Miles Bridges cashing it in. He finishes with a game high fourteen.

Here really cool moment there at the end of the first half where it looked like the Hornets had a fast break dunk and unfortunately a foul and a lot of stuff going on there at the end, and the Hornets able to get a steal from Miles Bridges off the inbound and get himself a game three there to at least give them an opportunity to get some points there at the end of the half. And look his shooting day, I know, for a lot of people will look like it's someone in a fishing five of sixteenth from the field, three of seven from downtown. Unfortunately, it kind of mirrors the way that the team has gone. Is that, you know, if you looked at him in the first half, and you looked at the entire team in the first half, they look pretty when it comes to the way that they were being efficient in the first half. Miles Bridges two of five from the field in the opening quarter, and in the second quarter he was one of four, so a little bit better from that perspective. Three of nine ended up five of sixteen for the contest. So unfortunately that two of seven and in the second half wasn't exactly again, what you'd want to see from a guy who was your main offensive option. But I think the twenty points, you know, he kind of had to fight it a little bit. And also with the nine rebounds one shot a double double. I'll give Miles Bridges might not just outside of his former hometown Offleant Michigan in Detroit.

Here really cool moment there at the end of the first half where it looked like the Hornets had a fast break dunk and unfortunately a foul and a lot of stuff going on there at the end, and the Hornets able to get a steal from Miles Bridges off the inbound and get himself a game three there to at least give them an opportunity to get some points there at the end of the half. And look his shooting day, I know, for a lot of people will look like it's someone in a fishing five of sixteenth from the field, three of seven from downtown. Unfortunately, it kind of mirrors the way that the team has gone. Is that, you know, if you looked at him in the first half, and you looked at the entire team in the first half, they look pretty when it comes to the way that they were being efficient in the first half. Miles Bridges two of five from the field in the opening quarter, and in the second quarter he was one of four, so a little bit better from that perspective. Three of nine ended up five of sixteen for the contest. So unfortunately that two of seven and in the second half wasn't exactly again, what you'd want to see from a guy who was your main offensive option. But I think the twenty points, you know, he kind of had to fight it a little bit. And also with the nine rebounds one shot a double double. I'll give Miles Bridges might not just outside of his former hometown Offleant Michigan in Detroit.

Yeah, I'm not gonna say I'm gonna give Miles a pass for not having a good second half or anything like that. But look, I mean, he's the number one scoring option right now with LaMelo Ball and Trey Man and several other guys out of the fold right now, Brandon Miller's out, Daykwon Jefferies didn't play yesterday as well. I know day Kwon's a bench guy, but still it just kind of shows you the limited options that the Hornets have, especially offensively in that game on Friday against the Pistons. But I mean, I want to say he's struggling out there, but it's tough. It's tough when you're the number one mark man on a team that doesn't have a whole lot of depth right now. It definitely throws out things offensively. I go back to what I said in the first segment where Mark Williams was dribbling that ball up towards mid court and it resulted in a turn over in a runout and a fast break opportunity for Detroit. The other way, It's just they're looking for Miles a lot offensively, and there's not much more that you can do about it other than just try to do the best of what you can with limited options elsewhere offensively. So Miles Bridges definitely has been a kind of a savior in a sense here for this team the last couple of games with the mellow ball and a couple of the other guys being out because of just all the injuries and not having a lot of other options offensively, so Miles Bridge is a good silver lining selection. The biggest silver lining of them all yesterday was probably what happened off the court. Miles Bridges, of course, a native of Flint, Michigan, not too far away from Detroit, brought fifteen middle scorers from his hometown to enjoy the game. Here's what he had to say after the contest about that experience and why he did it.

Yeah, I'm not gonna say I'm gonna give Miles a pass for not having a good second half or anything like that. But look, I mean, he's the number one scoring option right now with LaMelo Ball and Trey Man and several other guys out of the fold right now, Brandon Miller's out, Daykwon Jefferies didn't play yesterday as well. I know day Kwon's a bench guy, but still it just kind of shows you the limited options that the Hornets have, especially offensively in that game on Friday against the Pistons. But I mean, I want to say he's struggling out there, but it's tough. It's tough when you're the number one mark man on a team that doesn't have a whole lot of depth right now. It definitely throws out things offensively. I go back to what I said in the first segment where Mark Williams was dribbling that ball up towards mid court and it resulted in a turn over in a runout and a fast break opportunity for Detroit. The other way, It's just they're looking for Miles a lot offensively, and there's not much more that you can do about it other than just try to do the best of what you can with limited options elsewhere offensively. So Miles Bridges definitely has been a kind of a savior in a sense here for this team the last couple of games with the mellow ball and a couple of the other guys being out because of just all the injuries and not having a lot of other options offensively, so Miles Bridge is a good silver lining selection. The biggest silver lining of them all yesterday was probably what happened off the court. Miles Bridges, of course, a native of Flint, Michigan, not too far away from Detroit, brought fifteen middle scorers from his hometown to enjoy the game. Here's what he had to say after the contest about that experience and why he did it.

That means a lot because I was in their shoes at one time and the people that made it to the NBA from Flint, they did that for me, So for me to do that for them, it is a big.

That means a lot because I was in their shoes at one time and the people that made it to the NBA from Flint, they did that for me, So for me to do that for them, it is a big.

Thing for me.

Thing for me.

Pretty cool for Miles to get back to his community, even though he's playing in Charlotte here he does a lot obviously here into Queen City with a lot of his charity work too, but the fact that he's able to do it on the road back in Detroit is pretty special as well. So Miles Bridge is certainly a good pick there for silver lining candidacy. I'm gonna go to the bench for mine. I'm gonna take Nick Richards.

Pretty cool for Miles to get back to his community, even though he's playing in Charlotte here he does a lot obviously here into Queen City with a lot of his charity work too, but the fact that he's able to do it on the road back in Detroit is pretty special as well. So Miles Bridge is certainly a good pick there for silver lining candidacy. I'm gonna go to the bench for mine. I'm gonna take Nick Richards.

Nick Richards high posts one dribble, hand off green, Green, turns the corner, gets downhill up in the left hand, spins it off the glass. Is that a pass? I think so? Nick Richards finishes with a Doctor Pepper dunk and the Hornets are back on top twenty to eighteen.

Nick Richards high posts one dribble, hand off green, Green, turns the corner, gets downhill up in the left hand, spins it off the glass. Is that a pass? I think so? Nick Richards finishes with a Doctor Pepper dunk and the Hornets are back on top twenty to eighteen.

I thought Nick played a pretty solid game all things considered yesterday, didn't have a ton of minutes out there and totally played a little bit over seventeen minutes for the contest. Finishes with ten points, had five assists, which is a career high. Now four rebounds, a plus eleven in the plus minus. I'm not really sure if the Hornets were trying to go small there in the second half. I wasn't really paying attention in the heat of the moment. But in the second half, Nick Richards only ended up playing about six and a half little bit under seven minutes, and he only scored three points, but he was a plus two and the plus minus. In fact, he was the only player in the second half for the Hornets that was a positive in the plus minus, because they got outscored so much there in the third and fourth quarters. So I'd have to go back and look a little bit to see what the strategy was from Charlotte. But Nick Richards I thought had a pretty solid game all things considered, because his minutes have definitely taken a little bit of a hit here as of late because of all of the center depth that is now back here in Charlotte. Mark Williams obviously getting the lion's share there in a starting role. He played twenty eight minutes yesterday. Mussa Diabat got transferred to Greensboro. They're going to try to work on some of his offense there. Now that Mark and Nick are healthy here at the big league clubs. So that's the beauty of these two way deals and being able to assign players back and forth between the G League and the NBA is when you're fully healthy, you're able to get some guys some extra work there to work on the finer things at the G league level. But I thought that Nick Richards did a really good job just being efficient four to seven from the field, two for three at the free throw line, had those rebounds that I was talking about as well. So I mean it's kind of an EBB and flow because you go through these peaks and these valleys in the Association as a player now as a team right now, obviously the Hornets are in a rut losing nine in a row. But Nick Richards has done a really good job kind of trying to limit those peaks and valleys and just be very consistent, because that's what keeps you around in the NBA is consistency. Anybody can go out there. This is like a Steve Clifford quote from last year, maybe two years ago, is anybody can go out there and score fifteen points in a game, but can you do it consistently? Can you consistently give ten and four, ten and five every night, like Nick Richards did on Friday against the Piston. So I really like the backup center position that he's done a really good job of the last two three years now that he's been here ever since in the league. But it's starting to take a little bit of hit minutes wise, unfortunately, just because Mark Williams is back in the fold. But again, that's a good problem to have. Nick Richards I thought was a little bit of a spark plug off the bench last night.

I thought Nick played a pretty solid game all things considered yesterday, didn't have a ton of minutes out there and totally played a little bit over seventeen minutes for the contest. Finishes with ten points, had five assists, which is a career high. Now four rebounds, a plus eleven in the plus minus. I'm not really sure if the Hornets were trying to go small there in the second half. I wasn't really paying attention in the heat of the moment. But in the second half, Nick Richards only ended up playing about six and a half little bit under seven minutes, and he only scored three points, but he was a plus two and the plus minus. In fact, he was the only player in the second half for the Hornets that was a positive in the plus minus, because they got outscored so much there in the third and fourth quarters. So I'd have to go back and look a little bit to see what the strategy was from Charlotte. But Nick Richards I thought had a pretty solid game all things considered, because his minutes have definitely taken a little bit of a hit here as of late because of all of the center depth that is now back here in Charlotte. Mark Williams obviously getting the lion's share there in a starting role. He played twenty eight minutes yesterday. Mussa Diabat got transferred to Greensboro. They're going to try to work on some of his offense there. Now that Mark and Nick are healthy here at the big league clubs. So that's the beauty of these two way deals and being able to assign players back and forth between the G League and the NBA is when you're fully healthy, you're able to get some guys some extra work there to work on the finer things at the G league level. But I thought that Nick Richards did a really good job just being efficient four to seven from the field, two for three at the free throw line, had those rebounds that I was talking about as well. So I mean it's kind of an EBB and flow because you go through these peaks and these valleys in the Association as a player now as a team right now, obviously the Hornets are in a rut losing nine in a row. But Nick Richards has done a really good job kind of trying to limit those peaks and valleys and just be very consistent, because that's what keeps you around in the NBA is consistency. Anybody can go out there. This is like a Steve Clifford quote from last year, maybe two years ago, is anybody can go out there and score fifteen points in a game, but can you do it consistently? Can you consistently give ten and four, ten and five every night, like Nick Richards did on Friday against the Piston. So I really like the backup center position that he's done a really good job of the last two three years now that he's been here ever since in the league. But it's starting to take a little bit of hit minutes wise, unfortunately, just because Mark Williams is back in the fold. But again, that's a good problem to have. Nick Richards I thought was a little bit of a spark plug off the bench last night.

Yeah, I think looking at the way that it worked in the second half, I'm kind of looking at at the breakdown of the minutes right now. It seems like Mark and Nick played equal minutes in the third and fourth quarter. It was just Mark played basically ten of the twelve minutes in the fourth quarter, so Nick didn't necessarily get as much run in that fourth quarter as he normally would have. They kind of went with Mark from the start in that fourth kind of wrote them all the way down, and normally we've a lot of times we've seen Mussa Diabata take some of those minutes you mentioned Rob that a lot of those minutes that went to Diabatee now are getting reabsorbed by Mark and Musa had a great game last night in Greensboro or with Greensboro against the Cleveland Charge. So that was at least something you looked at and said, can be you know, a real great thing up and down the Hornets player development pathway because of the fact that you're getting all three of your centers major reps. And look, this has gotten to the point now where they've built Mark's minutes up to the point where they're confident that he can go the requisite amount that is the lion's share, which means that Nick Richards has to take more advantage of his opportunities, and he definitely did last night with a ten point effort in seventeen minutes. If you look at the way the front court looked for Charlotte, they were very efficient. The points in the paint was plus two for Charlotte over Detroit. And I also think too from the defensive aspect, you like what they were able to do against Jalen Durham. I know Durham had fourteen rebounds but only ten points, so keeping him in check is certainly something you want to see. I think even off the bench. You know, Beef stew who's somebody who has hurt the Hornets in the past, had just only five points in eighteen minutes. So from that perspective, I think it was a night that you could say, even though they didn't win on the scoreboard, the Hornets front court kind of won the day, at least from the center position, because you love what you're seeing from these two. And my heart is warmed rob by the fact that we've really waited to see this come to fruition over the better part of the last year and a half two years, because we all kind of wondered what that next step looked like for Mark and also how much it would help Nick. And I just like now that we're seeing them both now play consistent enough minutes to where not only do they have those two, but they also have a third step guy and move so that they can go to if they ever need it. But it's a great thing to see from both those guys, and I'm glad that they're now getting the recognition amongst the Hornets faithful as they try to help turn this thing back around.

Yeah, I think looking at the way that it worked in the second half, I'm kind of looking at at the breakdown of the minutes right now. It seems like Mark and Nick played equal minutes in the third and fourth quarter. It was just Mark played basically ten of the twelve minutes in the fourth quarter, so Nick didn't necessarily get as much run in that fourth quarter as he normally would have. They kind of went with Mark from the start in that fourth kind of wrote them all the way down, and normally we've a lot of times we've seen Mussa Diabata take some of those minutes you mentioned Rob that a lot of those minutes that went to Diabatee now are getting reabsorbed by Mark and Musa had a great game last night in Greensboro or with Greensboro against the Cleveland Charge. So that was at least something you looked at and said, can be you know, a real great thing up and down the Hornets player development pathway because of the fact that you're getting all three of your centers major reps. And look, this has gotten to the point now where they've built Mark's minutes up to the point where they're confident that he can go the requisite amount that is the lion's share, which means that Nick Richards has to take more advantage of his opportunities, and he definitely did last night with a ten point effort in seventeen minutes. If you look at the way the front court looked for Charlotte, they were very efficient. The points in the paint was plus two for Charlotte over Detroit. And I also think too from the defensive aspect, you like what they were able to do against Jalen Durham. I know Durham had fourteen rebounds but only ten points, so keeping him in check is certainly something you want to see. I think even off the bench. You know, Beef stew who's somebody who has hurt the Hornets in the past, had just only five points in eighteen minutes. So from that perspective, I think it was a night that you could say, even though they didn't win on the scoreboard, the Hornets front court kind of won the day, at least from the center position, because you love what you're seeing from these two. And my heart is warmed rob by the fact that we've really waited to see this come to fruition over the better part of the last year and a half two years, because we all kind of wondered what that next step looked like for Mark and also how much it would help Nick. And I just like now that we're seeing them both now play consistent enough minutes to where not only do they have those two, but they also have a third step guy and move so that they can go to if they ever need it. But it's a great thing to see from both those guys, and I'm glad that they're now getting the recognition amongst the Hornets faithful as they try to help turn this thing back around.

Hornets Falter in Detroit on Friday ninety eight to ninety four next chance on Sunday to take on to Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland's gonna be a tall task, but we will provide you with our game preview here in just a few moments here on the Hornets Podcast, Rob Longo and we'll progic the host of Hornets Post Game on the flagship station sports Radio WFNZ, putting a button on this episode of the HC as always brought to you by Sena and taking a little bit of time off here as we get ramped back up to daily podcasting and over the weekend, we're gonna take Saturday off, so we're gonna have our game review of the Hornets taken on the Calves here. Whether you're listening on Saturday or Sunday, this is your game preview for the Hornets taken on the Calves. If you go back to the season series hasn't gone well for the Hornets. Last time that the Hornets and Calves square off, Charlotte Fell won sixteen to one oh two on a Saturday afternoon in Spectrum Center back on the first week of December. Brandon Miller had a team high twenty five points. Evan Mobley, though had a career high forty one for Cleveland. Cleveland also outpaid Charlotte forty to eighteen in the first quarter. Calves never looked back. Also worth noting that the Hornets didn't have LaMelo Ball, Grant Williams, trade Man, Mussada Botte, Miles Bridges, Nick Richards, or t John Salon for that one. For what it's worth, Cleveland's been really hot ever since that game. They had a second night of a back to back in Miami. They lost that game, and ever since then they've been on a tear here. They've won nine in a row, including a big win last night. So it's gonna be tough sledding here for the Hornets. Taken on the Calves on Sunday six o'clock airtime here on the Hornets Radio Network. And you can of course watch the game two on Hornets on FanDuel Sports Network. But will you know how these game previews work? We need a Cavs player to watch, a Hornets player to watch, and a statistic to watch. Where would you like to begin.

Hornets Falter in Detroit on Friday ninety eight to ninety four next chance on Sunday to take on to Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland's gonna be a tall task, but we will provide you with our game preview here in just a few moments here on the Hornets Podcast, Rob Longo and we'll progic the host of Hornets Post Game on the flagship station sports Radio WFNZ, putting a button on this episode of the HC as always brought to you by Sena and taking a little bit of time off here as we get ramped back up to daily podcasting and over the weekend, we're gonna take Saturday off, so we're gonna have our game review of the Hornets taken on the Calves here. Whether you're listening on Saturday or Sunday, this is your game preview for the Hornets taken on the Calves. If you go back to the season series hasn't gone well for the Hornets. Last time that the Hornets and Calves square off, Charlotte Fell won sixteen to one oh two on a Saturday afternoon in Spectrum Center back on the first week of December. Brandon Miller had a team high twenty five points. Evan Mobley, though had a career high forty one for Cleveland. Cleveland also outpaid Charlotte forty to eighteen in the first quarter. Calves never looked back. Also worth noting that the Hornets didn't have LaMelo Ball, Grant Williams, trade Man, Mussada Botte, Miles Bridges, Nick Richards, or t John Salon for that one. For what it's worth, Cleveland's been really hot ever since that game. They had a second night of a back to back in Miami. They lost that game, and ever since then they've been on a tear here. They've won nine in a row, including a big win last night. So it's gonna be tough sledding here for the Hornets. Taken on the Calves on Sunday six o'clock airtime here on the Hornets Radio Network. And you can of course watch the game two on Hornets on FanDuel Sports Network. But will you know how these game previews work? We need a Cavs player to watch, a Hornets player to watch, and a statistic to watch. Where would you like to begin.

All the Cavs player to watch is is Evan Mobley. Obviously, he had a career on forty one in that game that the Hornets played again the last time out, and he's somebody who is always hard to kind of account for. I'm hoping that the Hornets front court is able to once again get themselves back like they had a couple of nights ago when you think about what happened on Friday and obviously going into this one, but Mobley is very much a big part of this player to watch for on the Hornets side, I'll go back to Miles Bridges. I know a twenty point effort on Friday night is something that he felt like could obviously be a lot, But I think he also looked at himself too in the mirror and said, hey, you know, we all have to be better around him. And hopefully he's kind of leading the way in this one. And we'll see whether or not the Hornets get back some bodies for Sunday afternoon. But obviously, from Miles perspective, that's something you look at as far as trying to make sure that the Hornets are better. And obviously this one's going to come down to points in the paint, because when you think about Cleveland, you think about their ability to do work on the interior, and if you go to the Hornets games against the caval they've been able to do that. Hornets lost their last game one sixteen to one oh two against Cleveland. That game made Cleveland twenty one and three, and when you think about points in the paint, Cleveland dominated forty eight to forty two in that regard. In the first matchup between these two squads where the Hornets actually had themselves a chance in this one, they were only down three going into the fourth court of the Hornets very much trying to hold their own in this one. Points in the paint there, Cleveland had sixty to forty two advantage, and that was, of course when the horns were playing a little bit more shorthanded on the front court. So this is one in the particular stat line where you have to at least be somewhat close to your opposition, because if the Hornets are unable to contain Cleveland of the paint, they're going to have a very hard chance of picking this one up in the win column.

All the Cavs player to watch is is Evan Mobley. Obviously, he had a career on forty one in that game that the Hornets played again the last time out, and he's somebody who is always hard to kind of account for. I'm hoping that the Hornets front court is able to once again get themselves back like they had a couple of nights ago when you think about what happened on Friday and obviously going into this one, but Mobley is very much a big part of this player to watch for on the Hornets side, I'll go back to Miles Bridges. I know a twenty point effort on Friday night is something that he felt like could obviously be a lot, But I think he also looked at himself too in the mirror and said, hey, you know, we all have to be better around him. And hopefully he's kind of leading the way in this one. And we'll see whether or not the Hornets get back some bodies for Sunday afternoon. But obviously, from Miles perspective, that's something you look at as far as trying to make sure that the Hornets are better. And obviously this one's going to come down to points in the paint, because when you think about Cleveland, you think about their ability to do work on the interior, and if you go to the Hornets games against the caval they've been able to do that. Hornets lost their last game one sixteen to one oh two against Cleveland. That game made Cleveland twenty one and three, and when you think about points in the paint, Cleveland dominated forty eight to forty two in that regard. In the first matchup between these two squads where the Hornets actually had themselves a chance in this one, they were only down three going into the fourth court of the Hornets very much trying to hold their own in this one. Points in the paint there, Cleveland had sixty to forty two advantage, and that was, of course when the horns were playing a little bit more shorthanded on the front court. So this is one in the particular stat line where you have to at least be somewhat close to your opposition, because if the Hornets are unable to contain Cleveland of the paint, they're going to have a very hard chance of picking this one up in the win column.

I like a lot of those picks. I think a lot of them certainly makes sense. I guess in terms of a Cavs player to watch, I'm going to take Donovan Mitchell didn't have his best game against Dallas, but was still in double figures. He still continues to be one of those guys that's always gonna be in the All Star conversation this time of the year. Great guard. Play hard to not talk him up anymore, but Donovan Mitchell gonna be my player to watch here for the Cavs when we take a look at this game preview. For me on the Hornet side of things, it's just so touch and go right now because of these guys that are in and out of the lineup, and you know, obviously Miles Bridges had a really good night the other night in Detroit. I guess I'll take Mark Williams if he's gonna be out there, just because I'm interested to see that Evan Mobley versus Mark Williams lineup. Mark does a really good job guarding the perimeter, which is something that you're gonna need against the guy like Evan Mobley because he likes to stretch the four. I think he plays more of a four if for being honest, in a five. I know they go with that Twin Towers look with Jared Allen, where it's kind of like two five's out there, but in this age of positionless basketball, if you want to look at it that way. I think Evan Mobley's let me be a little bit more of a four rather than a five, just because of his three point shooting. That's not to say Jared Allen can't go out there and step beyond New York and hit a three as well, but Mark Williams is gonna have his work cut out for him just defending on the perimeter as well as anything that he can do offensively. Points in a paint makes a ton of sense. But in terms of the statistic side of things, I think I'm gonna look at bench points just because the Hornets need to have that second unit score a little bit more. They did a better job of it against Detroit the other night, where they had thirty four bench points compared to where they only had twelve in an overtime loss against the Chicago Bulls at the end of December. So I think that the fact that you just need to have a little bit more second scoring. I know Cleveland likes to shorten the bench a little bit as well. They only usually play eight maybe nine deep night in and night out. They got guys like Kris Lavern and George niang that can score in double figures off the bench. Right now, the Hornets just don't simply have that because of the lack of depth. Nick Richards is the only guy that was in double figures off the bench for Charlotte the other night against Detroit. So it's gonna have to be by committee a little bit. I'm not saying that kJ Simpson needs to go out there and take fifteen shots and score twelve points or anything like that, or Cody Mark needs to go out there and have a career night, but just a little bit more consistency, a little bit more depth coming off the bench could certainly go a long way. Here for Charlotte on Sunday, that's your silver Linings recap, that is your game preview here for the Hornets, taken on the Cavs on Sunday, whether you're listening to this on Saturday or Sunday. And before you know what, we will be back to daily podcasting. But in the meantime we'll Pologic the host of Hornets postgame on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ. Pleasure talking to you as always once again, a happy twenty twenty five to you in yours and we'll talk to you soon.

I like a lot of those picks. I think a lot of them certainly makes sense. I guess in terms of a Cavs player to watch, I'm going to take Donovan Mitchell didn't have his best game against Dallas, but was still in double figures. He still continues to be one of those guys that's always gonna be in the All Star conversation this time of the year. Great guard. Play hard to not talk him up anymore, but Donovan Mitchell gonna be my player to watch here for the Cavs when we take a look at this game preview. For me on the Hornet side of things, it's just so touch and go right now because of these guys that are in and out of the lineup, and you know, obviously Miles Bridges had a really good night the other night in Detroit. I guess I'll take Mark Williams if he's gonna be out there, just because I'm interested to see that Evan Mobley versus Mark Williams lineup. Mark does a really good job guarding the perimeter, which is something that you're gonna need against the guy like Evan Mobley because he likes to stretch the four. I think he plays more of a four if for being honest, in a five. I know they go with that Twin Towers look with Jared Allen, where it's kind of like two five's out there, but in this age of positionless basketball, if you want to look at it that way. I think Evan Mobley's let me be a little bit more of a four rather than a five, just because of his three point shooting. That's not to say Jared Allen can't go out there and step beyond New York and hit a three as well, but Mark Williams is gonna have his work cut out for him just defending on the perimeter as well as anything that he can do offensively. Points in a paint makes a ton of sense. But in terms of the statistic side of things, I think I'm gonna look at bench points just because the Hornets need to have that second unit score a little bit more. They did a better job of it against Detroit the other night, where they had thirty four bench points compared to where they only had twelve in an overtime loss against the Chicago Bulls at the end of December. So I think that the fact that you just need to have a little bit more second scoring. I know Cleveland likes to shorten the bench a little bit as well. They only usually play eight maybe nine deep night in and night out. They got guys like Kris Lavern and George niang that can score in double figures off the bench. Right now, the Hornets just don't simply have that because of the lack of depth. Nick Richards is the only guy that was in double figures off the bench for Charlotte the other night against Detroit. So it's gonna have to be by committee a little bit. I'm not saying that kJ Simpson needs to go out there and take fifteen shots and score twelve points or anything like that, or Cody Mark needs to go out there and have a career night, but just a little bit more consistency, a little bit more depth coming off the bench could certainly go a long way. Here for Charlotte on Sunday, that's your silver Linings recap, that is your game preview here for the Hornets, taken on the Cavs on Sunday, whether you're listening to this on Saturday or Sunday. And before you know what, we will be back to daily podcasting. But in the meantime we'll Pologic the host of Hornets postgame on the flagship station sports radio WFNZ. Pleasure talking to you as always once again, a happy twenty twenty five to you in yours and we'll talk to you soon.

Happy New Year, Rob, We'll look forward to the next time.

Happy New Year, Rob, We'll look forward to the next time.

And thanks to all of you for tuning in as well. For Will Polochic, I'm Rob Longos saying so long. Thank you for joining us on this episode of the Hornets Podcast. We'll talk to you tomorrow on hopefully a winning edition of the AHHC.

And thanks to all of you for tuning in as well. For Will Polochic, I'm Rob Longos saying so long. Thank you for joining us on this episode of the Hornets Podcast. We'll talk to you tomorrow on hopefully a winning edition of the AHHC.

Thank you for listening to The Hornets Podcast, brought to you by Santa, the official i ear nosen Throadcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. For more coverage, visit Hornets dot com.

Thank you for listening to The Hornets Podcast, brought to you by Santa, the official i ear nosen Throadcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. For more coverage, visit Hornets dot com.