Charlotte Hornets 2021-22 Season Review: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Charlotte Hornets 2021-22 Season was definitely a mixed bag. The team improved their win total by ten games compared to the season prior, going from a losing team that year, to a team that finished the regular season four games over .500.
The end result though, was the same—being bounced in the 9-10 matchup of the play-in tournament. After what had seemed at times to be a much more promising year, that’s pretty disappointing. Let’s take a closer look at the season— the good, the bad, and (definitely) the ugly.
The Good
If there’s one positive thing this season will be remembered for it’s the emergence of LaMelo Ball as a star and the true face of the franchise, as well as Miles Bridges’ huge improvements as a player.
In his rookie year, LaMelo showed he had the potential to be a major star in the league. He won Rookie of the Year despite missing 21 of that season’s 72 games, and only starting in 31 of the 51 games he played. This year, the former third overall pick improved even more.
Ball averaged more points, rebounds, and assists per game and became the team’s starting point guard and most important playmaker. He made the All-Star Game and finished in the top ten in all of basketball in assists per game. He was in nationally televised AT&T commercials throughout March Madness and came out with a new PUMA sneaker collection. It’s easy to forget that LaMelo is still only 20 years old— he has the potential to be one of the biggest (if not the biggest) stars the Charlotte Hornets have ever had.
The emergence of Miles Bridges (as long as he’s resigned in the offseason to a monster deal) is the other major positive development for Charlotte. Bridges went from a role player who started just 19 games in 2020-21, to averaging 35.5 minutes per game this season (the most on the team).
Bridges started 81 out of 83 games and led the team in points, awe-inspiring dunks, and led the entire NBA in skills as a rapper. Bridges became the player the Hornets had hoped Gordon Hayward could be and he’s a perfect complement to LaMelo Ball. If the Hornets keep Bridges (which they most definitely should), he along with Ball and Terry Rozier could prove to be a solid core to build off of going forward.
The Bad
Well, Gordon Hayward got injured… again. At this point, you have to expect Hayward’s not going to ever be available for anything close to a full season.
The highest paid Hornet, Hayward has been with the team for two seasons and earned a whopping $58,425,000, or just over $628,000 for each game he’s played. That’s pretty darn bad when you consider that on a per game basis, Hayward was fourth on the team in points, sixth in rebounds, and fourth in assists.
The Hornets seemed to struggle with Hayward off the court for much of last season and for a time earlier this season, but they really adjusted and learned how to play without him post All-Star Break. With rumors already swirling that Hayward wouldn’t mind a change of scenery, the Hornets will definitely try to trade him (and his massive salary) prior to the start of next year.
One other major bad aspect of the season that isn’t talked about often enough is how the Hornets inability to win an overtime game really cost them. The Hornets finished the year having gone 0-7 in overtime games and 6-8 in game decided by three points or less. If the Hornets had won just one of those seven overtime games, they would’ve finished as the 7 seed instead of the 10.
One game that really sticks out is the Hornets only OT loss after the All-Star Break, which came against the Detroit Pistons. The Hornets were coming off of a 32-point victory over the Toronto Raptors and were hosting a team that at the time had more than three times as many losses as wins.
After a back and forth battle, the Pistons, who hadn’t beaten the Hornets in almost 4 ½ years, won the game on a difficult fadeaway jumper by Kelly Olynyk. Had Olynyk missed the Hornets would’ve won by a point.
It’s crazy to think that a backup player making a tough shot was the difference between the Hornets securing the 7 seed (and then needing to win just one of two home games to make the postseason) and having to win two on the road as the 10 seed. There were definitely other missed opportunities to win games that cost them, but looking back this one really hurt.
The Ugly
The Hornets really, really need a decent center. They went from Cody Zeller a year ago to Mason Plumlee this season. Plumlee would be fine coming off the bench, but he’s not a starting caliber player. When you’re making just 39.2% of your free throws, well, that’s pretty ugly.
Center has been an issue for the Hornets for a while now and while getting Montrezl Harrell by way of midseason trade was a fine move, he’s only 6’7. Getting a true big man this offseason would be a good step towards avoiding the play-in next season.
The most “ugly” thing from the 2021-22 Season though happened this past Wednesday— the Hornets 132-103 walloping from the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks and Hornets split four games during the regular season and finished with the exact same record. It should have been a closer game, but the Hawks’ playoff experience and a third quarter meltdown proved to be too much for Charlotte.
Last season, the Hornets were bounced from the play-in in an embarrassing 144-117 defeat to the Pacers. They needed to do better this year. Even a single play-in win would’ve gone a long way. They couldn’t do it.
Changes will definitely be coming, and if the Hornets want to avoid another 10 seed in the play-in tournament, they need to be. Still, with the emergence of LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges there is hope that a brighter future (one that includes a postseason trip) is coming soon.