With the signing of Sean Marks, it appears the Hornet's Big Man rotation is set, barring any trades. Five big men is typically sufficient, so it appears we'll see a battle between Marks, Armstrong, and Diogu for the backup minutes behind David West and Emeka Okafor.
That's not the most impressive rotation around, but if Diogu can give West the 13 or so minutes of rest he needs and be an offensive option for the second unit, I can live with the less than stellar pairing of Armstrong and Marks behind Okafor.
Plus, we need someone to compete with Peja in the shirtless photo competetion.
Your thoughts?
22 glorious comments post your own
Niall Doherty
08/27/09 04:08 PM
Damn, we're gonna need a Honeybee feature or something to balance out that picture.
I'm cool with Marks being back. He definitely grew on me last season. He was trying too hard to be a poor man's David West in the beginning (or maybe he was asked to be?), but once he forgot about shooting jumpers and focused on the little things like boxing out and hustling, he became a fan favorite.
I'm wondering though, does this mean we've seen the last of Ryan Bowen? Charley Rosen will be frowny faced.
www.ndoherty.com #1
jochbe
08/27/09 04:17 PM
I am glad, in general, that Marks is back. Last year he looked to me like he would have been a really good option if he had been one spot further down the bench, which he should be in the rotation for this year. But...
The thing that makes me itchy about this whole scenario is Diogu. I feel more and more like a good part of our chances of being good this year hinge on his play, and I am not sure that is a good thing.
#2
Slobodan
08/27/09 04:17 PM
If he put some Tattoo, we have our "Bird Man"!
#3
Caleb462
08/27/09 06:19 PM
Like you said the other day, I would have rather seen the Hornets roll the dice on a younger guy like Sims or Hendrix... but do I like Marks. He plays hard, does what he can... and the fans have gone from hating him to loving him, which is cool. Looks like backup center is still going to be a weak spot though.
I don't think anyone is counting on any improvement from Hilton this year... anybody? I wouldn't be surprised if this is his last year in the league. His contract runs out after this year right? Of course, I'd love to be proved wrong.
And as much as I like Marks, his production just doesn't match his effort - an 8.8 PER for Marks last year. Yikes.
Oh well, atleast we got Diogu... I'm still pretty happy about that.
neworleansbasketball.blogspot.com #4
johnny_utah
08/27/09 09:05 PM
Mark's is a decent enough rebounder, yeah? And his height is suitable for center? Like others I was hoping for a younger backup for center. Courtney Sims I was keen on.
#5
MoPeteCP3
08/27/09 09:40 PM
i didnt know that's what he looked like without a shirt on.hmmm :)
#6
LSUhornet
08/28/09 09:33 AM
Ryan Schwan (Richmond)
"Do you feel Julian Wright can be a capable 2 man? Or is he a 3, plain and simple."
John Hollinger
(3:29 PM)
"He's a 3, but so is everybody on the Hornets. They have five 3s -- Posey, Peja, Wright, Brown and Peterson -- and no true 2s except their second-round draft pick. I like Wright better than the others because I think he's a better player (esp if Posey starts at the 3 while Peja goes to the pine, which probably should happen if he doesn't regain his mojo), but it's not a great fit."
-I would have to disagree with Mr. Hollinger. Brown is not a 3, he's a 16.
#7
Ryan Schwan
08/28/09 09:41 AM
Nice, LSU. :)
That's the question I'm struggling with in one of the posts that's in my head. Hollinger's take was pretty much exactly what mine was earlier in the summer: The Hornets have no shooting guards.
www.hornets247.com #8
ChrisTrew.com
08/28/09 01:11 PM
Sean Marks this year = Birdman last year
www.christrew.com #9
ticktock6
08/28/09 02:55 PM
You know, I am at work, and every time I've checked out this blog today I'm nervous that someone's going to come up behind me and ask why I'm looking at shirtless men. Haha
hornetshype.com #10
icebird
08/28/09 02:59 PM
Well, I'm excited.
A little context - I'm a New Zealander, and Sean Marks is our one and only presence in the NBA. In the spirit of cheering for the local boy, I've followed him from team to team. So a Sean Marks fan first, Hornets fan second.
If you had a choose any player in the NBA to be "your guy", Sean Marks would not be it. He can't create his own shot, so he's rarely going to show up as a box score hero in the scoring column. For his entire career, he's been the backup's backup, sitting at the very end of the bench, and only getting significant minutes in garbage time blowouts. Assessing his contribution to the game takes some significant box score divination. On a good night its "hey he scored in double figures today". Then you steadily work your way down the list: "Well he got a decent amount of rebounds for his time on the court", "well, at least his plus/minus was good", down to "well, at least he played."
So why am I excited that he's coming back the Hornets?
For the first time in his career he got minutes. Real, substantial important minutes.
Now injuries (Tyson and Hilton) and poor play by others (Hilton) were factors obviously, but he did actually get to make contributions that counted.
Ironically of course, if the Hornets are playing well and everything is going to plan, he'll probably play less than last year. But I look forward to seeing what he does in his second year with the team.
Expectations: With the other additions to the roster, I don't think the Hornets will be looking to him for scoring, beyond finishing off dunk plays and the like. They'll want rebounding, defense and the unglamorous stuff that *someone* has to do (setting screens, giving up fouls etc).
#11
Roger
08/28/09 04:43 PM
hahahaha, mouse is back, hopefully him and tmnt devin brown can help the bench out. get them some cheese and some pizza
#12
StefanC
08/29/09 01:04 PM
@ticktock6:
I know you're a teacher, but do you ever... you know... teach?
I'm just kidding. I just love how you're always on here, even at work. That's some Hornet dedication right there.
Every time I do it at school on my phone, I end up being caught and accused of cheating for some reason.
#13
ticktock6
08/29/09 01:59 PM
@ Stefan Classes were over when I posted that! I mostly stop by during off periods and lunch though. And my own blog may LOOK like I post during the day, but a lot of times I have it set to auto-post.
hornetshype.com #14
jyoung4
08/29/09 08:16 PM
Marks is more athletic than meets the eye. I think it is a good deal for the Hornets, need some extra height alongside Emeka.
www.BasketballinBlog.com - NBA News/Discussion
#15
Ryan Schwan
08/29/09 09:29 PM
Thanks for that story icebird. I started watching the Hornets for a reason fairly similar to yours. I just got addicted.
www.hornets247.com #16
joe
08/30/09 11:27 AM
http://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-hawks/joe-126887.html
Near the bottom of the article is says Courtney Sims is already an invitee to the Hawks training camp, and i just have a few questions.
1) Does that mean he is definitely going to it or was just invited because i was hoping he would still come to our training camp
2) If he does go to that training camp is it similar to summer league where anyone can sign him afterwards
#17
Ryan Schwan
08/30/09 12:00 PM
Players sometimes get multiple invites to summer camp. It doesn't necessarily mean he'll be there.
Unless Sims is offered a non-guaranteed contract for the season and he accepts it, anyone can sign him after the training camp session. Some teams require a player to sign those, some don't.
www.hornets247.com #18
Jo D
08/30/09 10:53 PM
Is the contract guarunteed?? I say we bring Courtney sims to camp and let them battle it out for that 5th spot in the frontcourt... Speakin of which do we have any news on sims... Healthy? On any other teams radar?
#19
LSUhornet
08/30/09 11:55 PM
@ Ryan
I agree completely. What I'm wondering is if the Hornets particularly care about not having a typical 2 guard. The last two seasons in a row we've had a limited skill set at the position with players that are more suited to being a SF. Two years ago most of the minutes at SG went to MoPete and Pargo. I'm wondering if this is why we took a chance on Thornton (who is undersized, but definitely a SG), and if it means he might actually get a shot at quality minutes despite Byron's dubious track record with rooks and playing time. Coach caught some heat for the lack of development of youngsters from Shinn this summer. Maybe this will make him reconsider larger roles for Wright and Thornton. (I'm assuming Collison gets the backup PG minutes by default already.)
#20
joe
08/31/09 08:02 PM
@Jo D : I asked Hoopsworld in one of their chats for a scouting report on SIms and if he would be worth a contract from the hornets
Bill Ingram:
That's a great question. Honestly, I think he's better than Hilton Armstrong. He's a big who does a lot of things well and had an amazing season in the D-League last year. He can score, rebound, blocks shots, and he can put the ball on the floor and create his own shot. He needs to add 10-15 pounds to his upper body, but he's a solid prospect.
From what he says he sounds like a solid idea, the hornets need to take a chance, weve got a couple guys that we know what were getting (paul, west, ext.) but we need more guys like sims and wright who if they have a breakout season could swing the season into something special, there really isnt any harm in signing this guy to our 15th spot
#21
Niall Doherty
09/01/09 06:47 AM
@joe: Thanks for posting Ingram's response. I'd love to see Sims given a chance to earn a roster spot. Hilton needs a bigger fire lit under him.
www.ndoherty.com #22