2017 Summer League

Quinton Wash

Matt Rochinski and Sam Perley of hornets.com will be following the Hornets throughout the 2017 NBA offseason and keeping fans up to date through the Buzz Words | Hornets Notebook. Keep checking back to see what the latest is as the season unfolds.

By Sam Perley, hornets.com | Monday, July 10, 1:16 p.m.

A busy, productive week for the Charlotte Hornets at the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League is officially in the books with plenty of strong play and impressive performances in the rearview mirror. The team posted a 3-2 record and fifth-place finish on the week, results that although are important, aren’t necessarily the primary focus heading into the competition.

Thanks to injuries and personnel departures, the Charlotte Summer League roster featured just eight available players in its final two games. Limitations aside, the Hornets coaching staff and front office still had plenty to be pleased with over the course of the week-long stay in Orlando.

Charlotte’s brightest star was forward Treveon Graham, who finished the week ranked fourth in the tournament in scoring (17.7 points on 47.4 percent shooting), tied for second in rebounding (8.3) and fifth in steals (2.3). Graham, who made 27 regular season appearances for the Hornets last season, sat out the final two Summer League games for precautionary measures with left hamstring soreness.

Graham’s former college teammate, Briante Weber, also put together a strong week down in Orlando – particularly on the defensive side. The feisty, 6’2” point guard finished tied for first in the competition in steals (2.8) to go along with averages of 11.6 points on 42.3 percent shooting, 4.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists. Weber also showcased his leadership skills throughout the tournament, regularly organizing the team vocally on the court.

Forward Johnny O’Bryant took advantage of Graham’s absence in the final two contests of the week, putting up 26 and 23 points, respectively, for the Hornets. The former second-round pick finished the competition ranked ninth in overall scoring (16.4 points on 45.2 percent shooting), while also averaging 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise of the week for the Hornets was rookie Dwayne Bacon. After starting relatively slow, Bacon capped off his final game with a 29-point performance, the highest-scoring output by any Charlotte player during the week. The nearby Lakeland, FL, native, who recently inked his rookie NBA deal, finished his first Summer League with averages of 15.4 points on 41.8 percent shooting, 4.2 rebounds and 1.0 assist.

“We were really happy with the Summer League team,” stated Hornets General Manager Rich Cho last Friday morning. “Some of the guys we had before on our team last year like Briante, Johnny and Treveon, they all played well. [I] also felt Dwayne Bacon, as the week went on, he played really well. [I] thought he had his best game yesterday with 29 points and I thought he did a great job defensively as well.”

Graham, Weber and O’Bryant will all enter Hornets training camp on non-guaranteed deals, essentially meaning they can be waived if they don’t make the final roster without any financial obligations. It remains to be seen whether any other players on the team’s Summer League squad will find their way back to the organization by means of two-way contracts, camp invites or through the G-League’s Greensboro Swarm.

The completion of Summer League marks the final formalized team activities until the players reconvene in mid-September for the official start of training camp. The Hornets’ practice facilities certainly haven’t been quiet though as players have routinely been in all summer long and will get busier when newcomers Dwight Howard, Michael Carter-Williams, Malik Monk and Bacon officially get settled in the city.

Training camp is roughly eight weeks away and if the Hornets’ 2017-18 season is anything like how their summer has unfolded, the city of Charlotte is in store for some exciting times in the upcoming future.

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Hornets Shine at 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League

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2017 Summer League | Hornets vs Magic - 7/6/17

Result: The absence of leading-scorer Treveon Graham wasn’t a problem this time for the Charlotte Hornets as they closed out Summer League play with an 86-78 win over the Orlando Magic on Thursday, July 6 in Orlando, FL. Despite just eight active players available, the Hornets ended the week on a positive note thanks to a pair of big performances from both rookie Dwayne Bacon (29 points) and Johnny O’Bryant (23 points). The victory seals a fifth-place finish for Charlotte in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League standings. 

Turning Point: After Orlando managed to cut a 16-point second-half deficit down to just 79-78 with 47.9 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Johnny O’Bryant knocked down the team’s first and only three-point field goal of the game to extend Charlotte’s lead back to four points. Kalin Lucas missed the rebuttal three-point attempt on the other end for the Magic and Briante Weber and Dwayne Bacon each hit a pair of free throws down the stretch to close out the victory for Charlotte. 

Hornets Player of the Game: Dwayne Bacon exploded for a game-high 29 points on 11-of-20 shooting (7-of-7 from the free-throw line) and a team-high eight rebounds in the victory. Bacon’s 29 points are the most by any Hornet player in five total 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League games. 

Magic Player of the Game: Przemek Karnowski finished with a team-high 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting (8-of-8 from the free-throw line), a game-high nine rebounds, three assists and two steals in 25 minutes off the bench. Karnowski entered the game averaging 6.7 points through his first three appearances in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League with both Charlotte and Orlando. 

Game Notes: Johnny O’Bryant added 23 points on 7-of-15 shooting and five rebounds… Briante Weber chipped in 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting, five rebounds, a team-high two assists and a game-high four steals… Anthony Gill scored eight points to go along with six rebounds and two steals… Treveon Graham (left hamstring soreness) and Gabe York (right hip flexor strain) did not play for the Hornets for the second-consecutive game… Charlotte shot 1-of-17 from three-point range (5.9 percent), while the Magic connected on 4-of-20 attempts from behind the arc (20.0 percent)… The Hornets knocked down 23-of-24 shots from the free-throw line (95.8 percent), with Orlando hitting 20-of-23 attempts from the charity stripe (87.0 percent).

Quote of the Day: “I feel like we had a good week. I got a lot better and the thing that I liked was my spots. I wasn’t rushed to play. I’m up to speed with the game and I liked that I did that. The things I didn’t like, I just have to focus more on [like] shooting the three. Getting in the gym and working on that and just keep getting better on defense. I feel like I played some solid defense this week, but keep getting better.” – Hornets guard Dwayne Bacon

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Hornets Handle Magic in Summer League Finale

chamrochinski

Postgame Interviews: Stephen Silas | Johnny O'Bryant | Dwayne Bacon

Result: An undermanned Charlotte Hornets squad couldn’t hang with the Detroit Pistons down the stretch in its fourth game of the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League, falling, 87-82, on Wednesday, July 5 in Orlando, FL. Playing without leading-scorer Treveon Graham (left hamstring soreness), the Hornets still got a huge performance from Johnny O’Bryant, who stepped up with a team-high 26 points in the loss. The Hornets picked up one point in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League standings, temporarily slotting them into fifth place.

Turning Point: Holding a three-point lead at the end of the third quarter, Detroit opened up the final 10 minutes of play with a 15-3 run to go up, 78-63, midway through the frame. Charlotte rallied to cut the deficit down to just two points with 33.3 seconds left on the clock, but Detroit’s Michael Gbinije hit a pair of free throws on the next possession to effectively seal the win for the Pistons.

Hornets Player of the Game: Johnny O’Bryant finished with a team-high 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting and four rebounds in the loss. O’Bryant’s output is the highest-scoring game by any Charlotte player through its first four games of the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League.

Pistons Player of the Game: Henry Ellenson notched a game-high 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting (4-of-8 from three-point range) and six rebounds in the victory. The second-year forward from Marquette University entered the day tied for fourth in the tournament in scoring at 17.7 points per game.

Game Notes: Anthony Gill tallied 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting and four rebounds… Dwayne Bacon added 14 points and four rebounds… Kris Joseph also scored in double figures with 11 points (3-of-3 from three-point range), four rebounds and a game-high three steals… Briante Weber chipped in six points, six rebounds, a game-high seven assists and two steals… Mangok Mathiang pulled down a game-high-tying seven rebounds… Gabe York (right hip flexor strain) also did not play for Charlotte… Both teams finished with 14 turnovers… Detroit won the battle on the boards, 36-31… The Hornets connected on 8-of-18 attempts from three-point range (44.4 percent), while the Pistons hit 9-of-23 shots from downtown (39.1 percent).

Quote of the Day: “I knew when our main leading-scorer, Treveon Graham, was out, I knew I was going to have to be aggressive, help my team compete and try and get a win. That’s really the main reason [for my performance].”  – Hornets forward Johnny O'Bryant.

Next Up: The Hornets wrap up Summer League play against either the Orlando Magic or New York Knicks at TBD on Thursday, July 6 in Orlando, FL. The game can be seen on NBATV and also followed along on the ESPN app.

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Charlotte’s Comeback Falls Short against Detroit

Turning Point: Down 23-16 at the end of the first 10 minutes, Charlotte knocked down 11-of-20 shots in the second quarter (55.0 percent) to help build a nine-point advantage heading into halftime. The Hornets, who held Oklahoma City to just 25.0 percent shooting in the frame, eventually stretched the lead to 20 points in the second half, sending the Thunder to its first loss of the competition

Hornets Player of the Game: Treveon Graham put up a game-high 19 points on 6-of-12 shooting (3-of-4 from three-point range), a team-high eight rebounds and two steals in the victory. Graham has now increased his scoring output in each of Charlotte’s three appearances so far in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League. 

Thunder Player of the Game: Vincent Hunter notched a team-high 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting, a game-high 10 rebounds and a game-high-tying two blocks in the loss. The former UTEP Miner is now averaging 16.3 points through Oklahoma City’s first three games of the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League. 

Game Notes: Dwayne Bacon finished with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, two rebounds, two assists and a game-high-tying three steals… Kris Joseph added 12 points and four rebounds… Anthony Gill, Johnny O’Bryant and Tyrell Corbin all chipped in nine points apiece… The Hornets scored 26 points off 16 Oklahoma City turnovers while the Thunder turned 12 Charlotte giveaways into 16 points… Both Charlotte (10-of-25) and Oklahoma City (8-of-20) shot 40.0 percent from three-point range… The Hornets outscored the Thunder in second-chance points, 18-10. 

Quote of the Day: “[Dwayne Bacon] is a versatile offensive player. He has a lot to his game: catch-and-shoot, play off the dribble, play pick-and-roll. He’s aggressive when he gets [the ball] and really likes to score, which can be a skill. We’re excited to see what he can do as we go through this.” – Hornets Summer League Head Coach Stephen Silas.

Next Up: The Hornets continue Summer League play against the Detroit Pistons starting at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, July 5 in Orlando, FL. The game can be seen on NBATV and also followed along on the ESPN app.

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Hornets Tally Holiday Win over Thunder

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2017 Summer League | Hornets vs Thunder - 7/4/17

Postgame Highlights: Game Highlights | Treveon Graham | Photo GalleryPostgame Interviews: Stephen Silas | Treveon Graham | Johnny O'Bryant

Result: A shaky second quarter forced the Charlotte Hornets into an early deficit they never fully recovered from as they dropped Game 2 of their 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League schedule to the Indiana Pacers, 84-77, on Sunday, July 2 in Orlando, FL. Playing for the second-straight day, the Hornets got off to another solid start, but lost control of things defensively in the midst of a 17-7 Indiana run shortly before the break. Charlotte picked up a pair of quarter wins in the affair, good for eight total points in the tournament and third place in the current standings. 

Turning Point: Trailing 17-16 at the end of the opening frame, Indiana connected on 11-of-15 second-quarter field-goal attempts (73.3 percent) to open up an eight-point lead heading into halftime. The Hornets managed to get back out in front by one near the end of the third, but the Pacers quickly pulled away again and never looked back on their way to a second-consecutive victory. 

Hornets Player of the Game: Treveon Graham led the way with a team-high 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting, four rebounds, three assists and a game-high-tying two steals in the loss. Graham is averaging 17.0 points per game in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League, tied for the sixth-best mark so far in the competition. 

Pacers Player of the Game: Travis Leslie finished with a game-high 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting and four rebounds in the victory. The former University of Georgia product has now scored 20-or-more points in both of Indiana’s games in the 2017 Orlando Pro Summer League. 

Game Notes: Briante Weber registered 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting… Johnny O’Bryant also finished with 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting and team-high marks in both rebounding (five) and assists (four)… Rookie Dwayne Bacon chipped in eight points and four rebounds… Indiana edged out Charlotte in the rebounding battle, 32-30… The Pacers shot 50.8 percent from the field (31-of-61) while the Hornets hit just 41.2 percent (28-of-68)… Charlotte came away with just five steals after tallying 11 takeaways in its victory over Miami one day earlier… Indiana outscored Charlotte in the paint, 44-32. 

Quote of the Night: “[Treveon] is the kind of guy you love having around. During the season if he didn’t play a whole bunch of games, he’d go out there and play the last couple minutes, play them hard and not make any mistakes. The ability to do that is special because sometimes guys really struggle with not playing and then getting in the last couple minutes. He puts the work in, he’s done a good job this summer and it’s showed the way he’s playing in Summer League.” – Hornets Summer League Head Coach Stephen Silas

Next Up: The Hornets will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder beginning at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4 in Orlando, FL. The game can be seen on NBATV and also followed on the ESPN app.

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Charlotte Falls in Summer League to Indiana

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2017 Summer League | Hornets vs Pacers - 7/2/17

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