Charlotte Hornets: Spencer Hawes and Dominos

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Spencer Hawes was acquired by the Charlotte Hornets in the Lance Stephenson. The NBA veteran big man came over with forward Matt Barnes. Hawes offers a big man with the skill set that the Hornets are looking for in order to play with Al Jefferson.

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What does Hawes do well? He shoots a career 35% from the three point line. He has passing skills, as Charlotte Hornets general manager Rich Cho noted in a report by Steve Reed of the Associated Press. This means that he can occupy the floor with Jefferson, allowing Jefferson the extra space he needs to operate in the post. His passing abilities mean that he can help feed the post when he is not shooting a bail out shot.

Trading Stephenson for Hawes creates a log jam in the front court while opening up space in the back court. Hawes becomes one of the four rotational bigs that the Hornets would use most, the group defined by Jefferson, Hawes, Zeller, and Vonleh. He also creates questions as to the roles of two other players currently on the Hornets roster.

The first guy is Bismack Biyombo, who really does not have a spot unless the Hornets are already going to give up on Vonleh. Biyombo is a free agent this summer, and the Hornets could just let him walk. That would open up almost four million in cap space. That cap room would help since point guard Kemba Walker is about to become a $12 million per year man.

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The second guy affected could be Marvin Williams. Williams is now sitting on a deal that expires next year. His place in the front court that he occupied this year is not obviously his in the coming season. Williams could move to the small forward if the Hornets decide not to resign Jeff Taylor, but the size of his contract on a one year deal screams trade package.

The last thing that is affected is the Hornets draft position. With Hawes in the fold, it is more likely that the Hornets will look to find a good two guard. That means that you can probably rule out Frank Kaminsky or Willie Cauley-Stein in next week’s draft.

Next: Hornets Draft Series: Cameron Payne