Old North Banter
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Charlotte Hornets: Going to the Finals…

By John Woodcock

January 4, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7, right) dribbles the basketball against Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30, left) during the third quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Hornets 111-101. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
January 4, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7, right) dribbles the basketball against Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30, left) during the third quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Hornets 111-101. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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If the Charlotte Hornets follow suit with other local teams, they could make a deep playoff run.

The Charlotte Hornets are two hours from tip-off so this is my last chance to point out something about the teams that I follow the closest.

North Carolina Tar Heels football – lost ACC Championship Game after 11 win season

Carolina Panthers – lost Super Bowl 50 after 15-1 season

North Carolina Tar Heels basketball – lost NCAA Championship on final shot after winning ACC Regular and Tournament Titles

Do you notice a trend here? Those teams all had great seasons, but could not push over the top to achieve unprecedented success.

Another trend you could notice is that only the Tar Heel basketball team was predicted to have as much success as they ended up having. The most optimistic Panthers guy had twelve wins with a chance for fourteen. The most optimistic Tar Heel football guy had them competing for the Coastal Division title.

So now I come to the Charlotte Hornets, who also were not predicted to do much before the season. That was especially true when it was known how long it would take Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to return. The team had a resurgence and finished the year tied for third in the conference, but getting the sixth seed from all the teams that were there.

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So what does that mean for the Kemba Walker powered Hornets? I think it means that they are going to go to the NBA Finals and then lose in seven games to the Golden State Warriors, probably on a thirty foot shot from Davidson’s own Stephen Curry.

Is this even possible? Look at the playoff bracket. Because the NBA still has the division winner as tiebreaker criteria, the Hornets got matched against the Miami Heat. The Heat were the Southeast Division winner. The Heat are without Chris Bosh.

Bosh’s absence means that the Heat have less depth on the bench. Throughout the year, we have seen the Hornets beat teams by having good efforts by ten guys. Also remember that the Hornets have a healthy Al Jefferson for this playoff run.

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    • The Hornets just need a single win in Miami to get out of the series. Game 1 would make as much sense as any other considering how both teams finished the season. Then victories in Games 3,4, and 6 would close it out.

    Roll to the next round. The Hornets would either get Toronto or Indiana. Indiana took game one, but are not favored to win the series. If they did win, the Hornets would get a team that they dominated in February at home. Given luck up to this point, let’s say the Pacers do beat up the Raptors and play the Hornets in round 2.

    Now comes the tricky part, the Cleveland Cavs. No one truly has an answer for LeBron. Even Courtney Lee is not that answer. So the Hornets would need perfect basketball, few turnovers, and lots of hot three point shooting. Like the Heat series, bench play would be important and the Cavs are fairly deep. A game 1 upset and more Cavs drama during the series would probably be necessary for the win in six games.

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    If you think that Atlanta might upset Cleveland, don’t. The Hawks have the Hornets number pretty good and would not be the best matchup.

    So that would manufacture the Hornets into the Finals where they would play the Warriors. The teams try to some of the same things on the court. The Warriors are obviously better at it, but Hornets bench play could create Al Jefferson or Jeremy Lin mismatches. After a track meet, each team could hold its home court leading to a Warriors win in seven.

    Next: Charlotte Hornets: It's Miami

    That is my Hornets playoff prediction based on my luck with the things so far since December 1 of last year. Rational? Not entirely. Yet that is why they play the games.

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