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Charlotte’s Returning Starters an Impactful Base

By Sam Perley and Sam Farber

Over the course of the opening week of the Charlotte Hornets 2021 Training Camp presented by Draft Kings, Sam Perley of hornets.com and Hornets Radio Broadcaster Sam Farber will each be building their own five-man teams throughout the week. Today, the Sams are each chosing two returning Charlotte starters to build the foundation of their teams. Check back each day to see which players get drafted to their squads and who ultimately emerges as the top Sam.

Tuesday, Sept. 28: Day 1 (Veteran Returning Starters)

Perley: “With the first pick in the Hornets Draft Kings Building Your Team draft, I am taking Terry Rozier. He played in all but three games last season and was the tenth-leading scorer in the NBA amongst shooting guards at over 20 points per game. He was also one of the best clutch performers in the league amongst all players, fifth in total three-pointers with 222 and had three 40-point games. I love how he just raises to the occasion and can go off on any given night for a big scoring total. That’s the reason I’m going with Terry Rozier for my first pick.”

Farber: “I can’t argue with that. I’m going to go with LaMelo Ball. I think for this Hornets team to take a big jump, LaMelo Ball needs to do the same. You look at a point guard like Ja Morant – really good Year 1, then Year 2 was able to get Memphis into the playoffs. Trae Young was a really good player Year 1 in Atlanta, Year 2 his scoring jumped 10 points per game and he became an NBA All-Star. LaMelo is so talented, how about making both the playoffs and becoming an All-Star this season?”

Perley: “I love your LaMelo Ball pick. He’s going to get a lot of points, rebounds, assists and steals and really fill up the box score on a nightly basis. With my second pick, I’m going to go with Gordon Hayward. Obviously, he missed some time last year with injuries, but when he was on the court, the Hornets played really well and won games. He’s a nightly 20/5/5 threat who can score at all three levels – three-point, mid-range and at the rim – and fits really well with Terry and LaMelo. He’s just so experienced, so versatile, such an incredibly smart player and that’s why I’m rolling with him for my second pick.”

Farber: “Can’t argue with Hayward either. I will happily take PJ Washington and I think this is a big year for him heading into Year 3. PJ has been remarkably consistent in terms of scoring, being a 12-to-13 points per game guy, playing 30 minutes a night. He’s one of the best three-point shooting big men in the NBA, shooting 37% as a rookie and 38% as a sophomore. This will be the deepest team that’s been in the Queen City since he came to the franchise so the question is can he maintain his scoring if his minutes or his shot attempts are eroded slightly? Or if he is able to maintain his minutes and production can we see that bump up? If he’s able to get to five three-point attempts per contest, can he maintain or even improve that three-point percentage? This will be a very big year for PJ Washington and I think he’s one of the sneaky key players for the team this season.”