The Sacramento Bee is reporting today that Bobby Brown, the star of the Hornet's Summer League team, has signed with the Kings for a two year minimum deal worth a little over a million dollars.  The Hornets did reportedly make a play for Bobby's services, offering him a one year deal, but Brown had received a big offer from the European Club FC Barcelona and wanted at least two years to remain in the US.  Sacramento offered the second year, and they got him.

I'm a little bothered by the Hornets not snapping him up.  A free agent rookie-scale contract is the smallest contract someone can offer.  I know we have CP3 and Mike James already on the roster.  I know we want to re-sign Pargo, and it does seem pretty stupid to carry four point guards, but come on.  We're not going to get anyone else cheaper, and he seemed to have the potential to be a good backup in the league.

Still, if we get Pargo back, I'm not going to dwell on it.  John Lucas tore up the summer league in 2006 and had people raving about him as a great point guard prospect - and he'll probably be in europe this year, since he's getting almost no interest after doing nothing except being waived by the Rockets since that performance.

There are also reports out of Denver that Chris Andersen has signed on to the Nuggets for a minimum one year deal.  I'm sure this will also be the source of a lot of second guessing as well, but I'm fine with it.  Andersen was given a shot to produce something at the end of March, and his time on the floor reminded me of one thing from when he did play for the Hornets.  Andersen was always a great energy guy who could rebound, but he was always completely lost on the defensive end.  He was more than just lost - he was so worried about blocking shots and making an impact he blew rotations regularly in the short time on the floor - despite all of Hilton's flaws, he does at least cover the defensive end of the floor fairly well.(Still, would it hurt to corral a few more rebounds, Hilton?  Please?)

Despite being thoroughly convinced that the NBA Summer League games aren't worth much, I went ahead and watched four of the Hornets games.  Anything to fight the symptoms of basketball withdrawl.

I also wanted to watch the players and see if any of them were going to be candidates for immediate trades - like Kirk Snyder and Cedric Simmons were after they were terrible or unable to go in the Summer League.  Here are my impressions:

• Julian Wright didn't give a damn for large stretches of the summer league.  Despite that, when he focused, he was almost always the best player on the floor.  You can point at his turnovers, point at his bad shooting percentage, but when he decided he was going to get aggressive, he was disruptive as hell on the defensive end and effective offensively.  I do not worry about him at all.
  
  
• I'm past worrying about Hilton Armstrong.  He had a couple strong scoring games, but overall, he was terrible.  He is STILL prone to stupid fouls.  He still hasn't been able to put on enough muscle - so he gets pushed away from the basket too easily.  His hands are poor, and he gets stripped all the time, and he takes way too long to gather himself to dunk, giving defenders extra time to close on him and knock the ball loose.  He also shows almost no instinct for rebounding - consistently misjudging his position and timing when going up for the boards.  If he has any trade value - I hope we use it.
  
  
• A ton has been made about Bobby Brown, and without question he had a good summer league.  However, I was left with questions about his shooting and stamina.  As each game wore on, his shot became more and more flat - and as his shot lost its arc, he began throwing it at the basket more than shooting it.  His commitment to push the ball was nice to see, and he did have good instincts for distributing the ball.  Is he better than Pargo?  I'd say no - mostly based on his shot and his defense, which was really scattered.
  
  
• I'd like to see Derrick Byars brought in to camp.  He seems to have a nice all-around game with some decent range and slashing skills.  He also showed willingness and skill at the defensive end.
  
  
• Adam Haluska is slow.  His shooting was off, but I was more worried about his speed.  He was constantly victimized by clear-outs where he had to go one on one with fast guards - and failed miserably.  I was hoping for more.

It's said that fans have a tendency to overrate their own teams players - a tendency that General Managers can fall into as well.  Part of this is due to watching those players every day and developing attachments to pieces and parts of their game.  I love West's baseline fadeaway, the deadly pick and roll at the elbow that Chandler and Paul run.  When Peja stops in his favorite 3-point spot on a fast break and the ball is on the way, I get a chill.

So what better way to kick off the James Posey era than to get an insightful look from one of the writers over at the CelticsBlog.  Steve Weinman kindly responded to my request to give us some insight on James Posey's game.  Enjoy.

Hornets fans,

It’s with great displeasure that I set out to write this letter to you.  Sure, I’m grateful to Ryan and the good folks here at Hornets247 for giving me a chance to come on and blabber for a while.  But you’ll have to please forgive me for me slight frustration at the subject: James Posey is no longer a member of my beloved basketball team.

On the bright side for all of you, that this upsets me so much is really just a testament to the congratulations that are in order for the Hornets organization and all you fans.  You’re in for a treat.

Undoubtedly, you’ve heard the whispers that at $25 million over four years, your team overpaid for a 31-year-old reserve small forward, and you’ve heard the claims from stat heads that his production isn’t what you might like it to be at that salary.  Four years from now, James Posey likely won’t be worth more than $6 million.  But he’ll be worth quite a bit for the next two to three years, so the suggestion here is to think of that fourth year as part of the ‘cost’ that it took to get Posey to New Orleans in the first place…and then to let our minds slide away from the issue of the big contract and onto the basketball court.

You know the basics by now, the same run-down that we of the green faith heard a summer ago at this time: that Posey can defend and hit the three.

But what you’ll see when you watch him every night is more than that.  This isn’t a guy who just makes an effort defensively.  He makes every effort for every second he is on the floor.  He is the type of defender who wants to be inside the clothes of his man.  He is the sort of player who just has to have every 50-50 ball.  He’ll back down from nobody.   He’ll come out of scrums clutching loose balls that you thought he didn’t have a chance to get.  He’ll give your Hornets team a mean streak and an added layer of protection for every player on the team.  This is a guy who truly gets the meaning of working or what’s on the front of the jersey.

That composure intangible is pretty impressive, too.  Posey will shoot the threes with such a relaxed stroke that you will almost manage to forget that the fate of a playoff game is hanging in the balance.  He’ll stroll to the foul line with less than ten seconds left in a one-possession playoff game like he’s walking his dog in the park.  Completely cool and unflappable.

As for the specifics of his capabilities, Posey is clearly a small forward and he is an excellent defender at the three.  He has the toughness and tenacity to play the four in small-ball line-ups for stretches at a time, but the Hornets will have to be wary of not over-using him there.  The numbers with the Celtics indicated that he wasn’t quite as effective there defensively, and more traditional post-up big men will certainly give him some trouble there simply because of the size issue.  He shouldn’t be your back-up power forward because neither his offensive game nor his defensive acumen fits the standards there, but he can guard the spot in spurts when called upon. 

As far as guarding the two is concerned, the contention here remains that Posey is deceptively quick.  We’re not saying that he can handle any two guard in the league, and again, both Posey and the Celtics were most effective this season with Posey playing his natural position at the three.  But against bigger twos with a bit less speed, Posey can certainly hold his own, and if he has the interior help that a player like Tyson Chandler brings behind him, he’ll certainly be able to cause problems for two-guards on the outside.  There was a rumor for a while earlier in the summer that the Hornets would be interested in starting Pose at the two.  Not a good idea as far as either the starting or the position in question would be concerned – but he can mark opposing off-guards when needed.  The long wing-span is a big help with this as well.

Speaking of that deceptive quickness, Pose is going to provide a surprise on the offensive end every now and then as well.  Don’t get me wrong -- generally speaking, he fits his reputation as a spot-up three-point shooter.  He loves to drift to the corners (easily his sweet spots) and the low wings and feast off of defenses that are inattentive to him.  You’ll get quite used to watching that relaxed kind-of-off-one-foot righty stroke of his over the course of the year. 

But every now and then, he’ll cross everybody up and get to the basket with greater speed than one would expect.  On the rare occasion that he makes a basket cut, it’s usually well-timed, and he loves to go baseline off of a give-and-go to swoop through for a reverse lay-in.  But in addition to that, Posey will also get you a basket here and there simply by putting the ball on the floor and getting to the rim.  He looks to go to his left for the scoop lay-up with the off-hand, and the rarity with which he utilizes the move allows him to catch defenders off guard.  Part of the reason for that rarity comes from the fact that Posey is a poor dribbler – on the odd occasion that he ends up pushing the ball ahead, he’ll remind you of a homeless man’s Stephen Jackson – but he picks his spots well and gets to the rim well when he does.  On the break, though, you can expect to see him looking to fade to the perimeter for kickouts rather than filling the lane and attacking hard.

All in all, for a reserve forward, James Posey brings a virtually ideal combination of skills and physical gifts with him to the Big Easy. He’s wingspan and frame (6-foot-8, 215 pounds) allow him both the height and quickness needed to be a versatile player and the physique needed to  rag some of the league’s top scorers all over the floor.  But Posey is also a heady player who makes excellent decisions with the basketball (takes open shots, moves the ball, cuts when he has the lane) and limits the dumb gambles defensively.

James Posey wears his heart on his sleeve every night, and I have no doubt that he’ll win a place in yours in no time at all.

Congratulations once more, Hornets fans, and here’s hoping you make it to the Western Conference Finals and no further.  In the event that the Celts are there, I’ve got no desire to see the man I insist on calling Big Game James in an opposing uniform in the Finals.

-sw

Thanks again to Steve Weinman and the CelticsBlog for taking the time to put this together for us.

Ha ha!  My nefarious plan worked perfectly.  As soon as I said the Hornets would do nothing this off-season, they had to go and prove me wrong.  It's something I love about their front office - they clearly watch for my opinions, and then set out to make me look foolish.  Too bad I'm on to them now.

Anyways, Posey is a solid pickup.  He'll slot nicely into the intense defense the second unit plays, and will be able to let both West and Peja get some nice minutes of rest.  Honestly, that second unit is going to be very, very hard to score on with Armstrong, Posey, Wright and Pargo.(assuming Pargo returns)  That group already put up some of the best defensive numbers in the league, and Posey is a clever, tough defender.

Offensively - he'll help a little bit.  He's a lot like Bruce Bowen - tough defender who can drill the corner three.  The second unit was pretty short on shooting, so having him on the floor will give Pargo a nice option on the drive and kick.  Still, expect the beginning of the second and fourth quarters to be really ugly as our team shows intense defense and a sputtering offense.

I'm excited to have Posey on board.  If they re-sign Pargo now, I think I can live with having Hilton as the primary back up big for now.  Maybe we can bring Andersen in, and with a training camp, have him actually do something.

All the signs were there.  I should have known the Hornets wouldn't be making much noise in this off-season.  The finances alone pointed to it.  This team doesn't want to spend past the Luxury Tax line.  As a team with the cheapest ticket in the NBA and one of the smallest markets - they really can't afford to spend past the Luxury Tax line.

Still, it's always exciting to speculate, and if you look at the team finances for this year, it looks like we've got about nine million to play with - allowing us drop a mid-level contract, pick up Pargo, and grab some other scrubs.  We had a few pieces that we probably could find a taker for - Butler and James aren't entirely immovable.  We could maybe clear some room, fix that bench, and roll to the Western Conference Finals this year.  I posted about it.  I got excited.

Reality Check.  Big names don't sign for short contracts.  Next year, assuming we pick up Julian Wright's and Hilton Armstrong's contract options, we'll have 64 million worth of contracts on our books after Paul's big extension.  If we sign ONE person to the mid-level this year for longer than one year, we'll be over the Luxury tax.  The following year, Tyson Chandler can opt out of his contract and sign a long term one.  You better believe that'll happen.  The year after that, David West can opt out of his contract, and sign another long term one.  Because of the clever way Bower signed him, his contract is actually getting smaller every year.  You better believe he'll opt out of that last year when it falls to 7 million.

This is why the Hornets have "expressed interest" in various players like Posey, Pargo and Hayes.  They can't put any money down because they feel they have to be conservative so they can keep the core together.

So - expect nothing flashy this summer.  The biggest move is that Hilton Armstrong may go - he's been only mediocre in summer league and Byron and Bower have been known to pull the plug quickly on someone they don't think is panning out.  I'd expect a couple Pargo-level signings, a couple scrub signings, and for the Hornets to call it an off-season.  It's a bit disappointing.

I will comment on one nice thing about the salary structure Bower has put together.  Morris Peterson and Peja's contracts expire just in time for West to opt out, giving us enough money that year to resign West and probably two more mid-level guys.  James and Butler expire just in time for Tyson Chandler to opt out.  He's built this team's salary structure so he can keep that core together.  With those three and a couple shooters, we're going to be good for a long time.