A huge Hornets offseason: Find a center, decide on Graham and Monk, add shooting

To use general manager Mitch Kupchak’s mid-season description, the Charlotte Hornets’ rebuild is a little ahead of schedule.

The way they played lately, emphasis on “little.”

The Hornets played their first post-season game in five years, getting drilled Tuesday by the Indiana Pacers. They finished this season on a six-game losing streak. So while this young roster progressed, there is still plenty of tuning ahead. This should be — needs to be — a busy off-season for the Hornets.

Kupchak has the tools. The Hornets will have a top-14 first-round draft pick, plus abundant salary-cap space — as much as around $30 million, according to Spotrac.

Three key NBA off-season dates: The draft lottery is June 22. The draft is July 29. Teams can start negotiating with free agents Aug. 2, and start signing them Aug. 6.

What must be addressed? Key off-season issues for the Hornets:

Center position must be upgraded

Coach James Borrego vented a little in late April, saying the center position has been a problem since he got here three years ago and could remain a problem the next three years.

It was odd that Kupchak did so little last off-season about such a clear area of need. The Hornets have been chronically weak at defensive rebounding and rim-protection. Adding second-round picks Vernon Carey and Nick Richards wasn’t going to have quick impact on that.

Cody Zeller and Bismack Biyombo are both unrestricted free agents, and it’s far from a given either will re-sign here. The Hornets could draft a center again, but quick improvement probably necessitates signing or trading for a veteran.

Three names that make sense to investigate: Sacramento’s Richaun Holmes and New York’s Nerlens Noel (free agents) and Indiana’s Myles Turner (trade). Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen is a restricted free agent, which complicates other teams’ pursuit of him.

Holmes is attractive, as far as ability to affect the game on both offense and defense. That could make him expensive, although not on the scale of last off-season’s 4-year, $120 million contract to small forward Gordon Hayward.

Which restricteds to bring back?

Malik Monk or Devonte Graham? Or both? Or neither?

Point guard Graham and shooting guard Monk will both be restricted free agents, assuming the Hornets extend them one-season qualifying offers: About $7.3 million for Monk and $4.7 million for Graham.

A few months ago, I thought Monk might be the higher priority, but he’s tailed off of late. Graham certainly has Borrego’s faith. Graham re-signing here would be as a backup, since LaMelo Ball is obviously this team’s intended future at point guard.

I don’t think either Monk or Graham will receive some massive offer sheet. However, the wild card in that process could be the New York Knicks, with up to $72 million in cap space. The Knicks seem to love Kentucky players as much as the Hornets, and Monk is a former Kentucky star.

Charlotte retaining the starting backcourt of Ball and Terry Rozier will eventually get very expensive. So it will be complicated deciding what cap space to devote to Ball’s and Rozier’s backups, which Graham and Monk effectively are right now.

An extension for Miles Bridges?

Borrego has said forward Miles Bridges’ improvement was beyond anything he expected in Bridges’ third season. Is that cause to pursue an extension of Bridges’ rookie-scale contract?

The Hornets have done some of these extensions in the past to mixed results: Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb deals were bargains, while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist’s was an overpay. Those were under Kupchak’s precedessor, Rich Cho.

Bridges has seemingly made himself into a big part of the Hornets’ rebuild. But agreeing on a price that would preemptively take him off the market in the summer of 2022 could be tough.

A more normal development summer

Kupchak called the 2021 rookie class — and specifically Carey and Richards — “overwhelmed” by the lack of run-up to training camp. There was no summer league, just a couple of weeks between the draft and camp, and then an abbreviated G-League season.

This summer will be important for Carey and Richards to catch up. It’s yet undecided how/whether the NBA will hold some sort of summer league following the draft. But at minimum, there will be several months for assistant coaches to work with the past rookie class and the upcoming one that didn’t exist in 2021 due to the pandemic.

Shooters wanted and needed

Finding additional shooting might not be as urgent a need as center, but Borrego has said Charlotte can never have an excess, the way he aspires to play.

The Hornets finished the regular season 22nd among 30 teams in field-goal percentage (45.5%) and 14th in 3-point percentage (36.9%). That forwards Bridges (40%) and P.J. Washington (38.6%) both made 3s reliably this season is a plus, but losing either Graham or Monk in free-agency hurts Charlotte’s shooting.

Keeping Hayward healthy (he was out from April 2 with a foot sprain) makes the Hornets better both because Hayward is such a good shooter and because his facilitating creates easier shots for others.

An extension for James Borrego?

Borrego enters the final season of the four-year contract he signed in 2018. Does he get an extension before his current contract expires?

There has been some fan grousing about Borrego’s player rotations. But he has navigated the post-Kemba Walker rebuild well, particularly the player-development aspect: Turning second-round picks Graham, Cody Martin and Jalen McDaniels into rotation players marks progress.