The Charlotte Hornets have picked up the 2017-18 option on general manager Rich Cho’s contract, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein. This means that, over the offseason, Cho will be tasked with righting the wrongs that kept the Hornets out of the playoffs.
After winning 48 games last season and losing in the first-round, Cho’s front office was able to convince free agents Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams to re-sign for less money than they might have been able to earn elsewhere. The Hornets, however, did not have enough financial flexibility to bring back guards Jeremy Lin and Courtney Lee, which hurt their backcourt depth -- additions Ramon Sessions and Marco Belinelli were not nearly as productive.
At 36-44, it is difficult to frame this season as anything other than a disappointment, especially considering Charlotte still has the statistical profile of a playoff team -- the Hornets are 11th in the NBA in net rating, even though their defense has ranked 24th since the All-Star break. Cho deserves credit for signing Kemba Walker to a four-year, $48 million extension back in 2014, but while Walker has become one of the league’s biggest bargains, there is now pressure on management to surround him with the sort of players who can help put Charlotte in the East’s upper echelon.
Given the improvement made by the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards, it might seem unfair to state that Cho needs to have the Hornets competing for home-court advantage in next season’s playoffs. This is not a rebuilding team, though, so the goal must be at least trying to close the gap.
