Drafting the wrong players, or failing to develop the ones they draft?

[thatlookseasy]

Reading through the thread on how Cho has done as GM got me thinking, is this organization simply missing on draft picks, or is it failing to properly develop players after they are drafted?

 

You look at a franchise like the the Spurs, and they seem to always find players deep in the draft who can come in and contribute.  But its not that they are just excellent at drafting, they put their players in a position to succeed and improve.  Kawhi Leonard, for example, wasnt much of a shooter in college (he was actually quite similar to MKG in that area), but after a couple seasons in San Antonio he is a legit threat from the corner, and developing that outside shooting threat has let the rest of his game improve as well.

 

That kind of improvement, particularly on offense, just doesnt seem to happen with players in Charlotte.  Biz still cant catch a pass, MKG cant shoot, Gerald Henderson still isnt a 3 point threat, and Kemba, while the best of the bunch, hasnt improved his distribution and still looks like the guy from UCONN. 

 

I think Clifford is a great coach, and is already up there with Thibs as one of the best defensive coaches in the NBA.  But I'm worried that if this team tries to focus on actually winning games (as they seem interested in doing), player development is going to be less of a priority at a time when it had never been more important considering how young this team is.

[MichaelNewtonII]

Clifford is a good coach and we have done some hiring at the assistant coaching positions with price and ewing to try and develop some players in the future, just give it some time.

[carolina-chuck]

I think it's both. But, more so with just drafting the wrong players.

 

The "failed" draft picks have made Cho go against his plans.

[Proudiddy]

Yeah, I'm sure lack of development contributes or complicates problems, but the bulk of our issues are due to drafting the wrong players.

 

As someone put it in the Cho thread following up on my post exploring those issues, a lot of those decisions seem to be realted the FO not wanting to ackowledge their mistakes with who they selected the year before.  (ex: Drafted Biz, so they don't take a better prospect at C while he's here.)

[FourthWard]

Missing on draft picks has been the bigger problem imo.  The selection of Alexis Ajinca in 2008 may be the worst pick this franchise has ever made.  I support drafting an international player, but Ajinca wasn't even the best player from France in 2008 (Nicolas Batum who was taken a few picks after we selected Ajinca).  Batum put up decent numbers in Europe, led his team to a championship and earned an MVP while Ajinca barely played.  Taking a risk on a "project player" is okay if you have an established playoff team but not when you need help at nearly every position like the Bobcats consistently do.  

 

This was just one move out of a series that leads fans to question the competency of the Bobcats scouts.  It wouldn't surprise me if they are the lowest paid scouts in the league and at least that would help explain the suspect draft picks.

[SuperJTheGreat]

I really try to keep dreaming that we'll get three 1st round pick including two top 10 picks. But I always have that little part of me that keep saying Cho, MJ & co will find a way to screw it up. I have that deep feeling we'll make a push to the 8th seed, get swept by Miami and end up with just Portland pick in the 20-25 range...

[carolina-chuck]

Bobcats just suck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We're the damn NBA version of the Cleveland Browns and Oakland Raiders. No matter what, we will always suck!

 

Look at Portland. This is the same damn team that drafted the biggest bust since Kwame Brown, "Greg Oden". This is the same team that saw their franchise PG, Brandon Roy's career end due to injuries. And, what!!!!!!!!! The Portland Blazers can still managed to over come those tragedies to become one of the best team in the NBA right now.

 

It doesnt matter who owns or manage this team.

 

 

[Keith Moons Liver]

Both. You don't obtain a history of failure as great as ours with some real ineptitude in all phases of building a team. 

[Wanderlai]

The Hornets name has had luck in the draft. LJ, Zo,  Baron, Anthony Davis. Maybe we can get #1 this year and #2 next year.

[Buzz]

I think the hardest part is being patient with development.

 

Paul George had his break out season in his 3rd year, and Roy Hibbert even spent time in the D-League before becoming who he is today.

 

Kemba and Biz have improved each season, granted Biz may never be the dominant center they thought he would develop into but he is coming off the bench and being a rim protector who can also rebound.  There is value in that.

 

With MKG and Zeller, we may be looking their 3rd years before something starts to really happen, although I thought MKG was progressing until his injury setback.  Even looking at Jeffery Taylor, he was coming along before getting hurt.  The consistency wasn't there but they are young.

 

I think it's too early to really think that the team can't develop players like MKG and Zeller, but outside of a few exceptions, it's taking players a few years to hit a stride, it's just hard being patient while they develop.

 

I say all of that while acknowledging that I haven't loved some of the draft picks.

[Rise of The Hive]

I think the hardest part is being patient with development.

 

Paul George had his break out season in his 3rd year, and Roy Hibbert even spent time in the D-League before becoming who he is today.

 

Kemba and Biz have improved each season, granted Biz may never be the dominant center they thought he would develop into but he is coming off the bench and being a rim protector who can also rebound.  There is value in that.

 

With MKG and Zeller, we may be looking their 3rd years before something starts to really happen, although I thought MKG was progressing until his injury setback.  Even looking at Jeffery Taylor, he was coming along before getting hurt.  The consistency wasn't there but they are young.

 

I think it's too early to really think that the team can't develop players like MKG and Zeller, but outside of a few exceptions, it's taking players a few years to hit a stride, it's just hard being patient while they develop.

 

I say all of that while acknowledging that I haven't loved some of the draft picks.

 

I think Zeller will be fine when he actually gets to log some serious minutes.

[Panther_Brotherhood]

When you look back at earlier drafts, it was the wrong players (Augustine, May, Morrison)

 

I think MKG will end up being a solid player.  His defensive ability is elite and he's athletic enough to get by being a slasher for a handful of years.  If he ever got down a consistent mid-range (15-18 ft) I think he'd have a nice long career.

 

Zeller at times looks fantastic.  He runs the floor well and can hit a 19 ft jumper.  Once he's been in a professional weight room for a couple years, i think he could start living up to potential.

[buzzcity]

Bad luck. Poor draft selections. Not to mention a culture of losing. Look at Diaw running the floor and producing now with the Spurs.

[rico6]

The players we have drafted would only fit on teams that have definitive talent at other positions. This team clearly lacks that talent. 

 

The only sure thing(s) we have is Jefferson and Kemba. As much as I like MKG, he's no #2 draft pick. As much as I like Zeller, (My initial draft day reactions show this) we should have bitten the bullet and drafted Noel.

 

We could have taken Beal who is averaging 20 ppg and would be an excellent combo to Kemba.  We got MKG who excels in every stat, but scoring.

 

Stern fuging us over with "The Brow" is the setback this team could have done without.