5 Stings – Miller’s Shot Diet Changes, Shotgun Fake Witchcraft, Non-LaMelo Minute Blitzes

A compilation of observations about Charlotte Hornets over the last two weeks.

In this week’s “5 Stings” I discuss why my panic meter is 1/100 on Brandon Miller, Grant Williams’ fake wizardry, Josh Green’s offensive uncertainty, and a fun Salaun stat to watch this season.

Grant Williams isn’t fast or athletic and isn’t particularly quick on his shots, but he gets to his points and creates space thanks to his great pump fake. It kept the 76ers struggling everywhere as they closed down hard only to give up sidestep 3s or moves to get them into the rotation.

Josh Green wasn’t brought to Charlotte because of his offensive firepower. However, we have officially flirted with the Maginot line in terms of damaging the team in offensive struggles. There has been a marked improvement in the last two games, but before that there was a struggle.

This clip is just one example of Green’s strange decisions on offense. He’s shooting 52% from three, but turns away that open shot for a wildly contested layup. Green needs to be more assertive, especially in the absence of Mann/Bridges. You’re not in Dallas anymore, you can hit the ball!

Tidjane Salaun is 6’10” with a 7’2″ wingspan, but I suspect he may finish the season with more pulled offenses than blocked shots. In the first part of the clip, you can see Salaun’s natural tendency to defend the basket by stepping into the driving path rather than trying to meet players in the air to block their shots. In the second part, Pritchard, who is 1.80 meters tall, scores to Salaun, although he is in position to contest the shot.

Overall, his unique style is effective; He limits his opponents to just 36% shooting at the rim. But this approach also runs the risk of leaving Salaun’s man exposed; He learned that he gave up an open corner 3 to Isaac in the Magic game. To reach his full potential as a versatile defender, he needs to develop better timing and confidence in freeing his feet to take shots around the basket.

With LaMelo Ball on the floor, Charlotte’s offensive rating is slightly below average at 113.6 (48 percent). Without him, that rate drops to 103.9 (6 percent), making it one of the worst offenses in the NBA. To put that in perspective, non-LaMelo minutes last season had a rating of 109.

It’s clear that Head Coach Charles Lee has been without key players for most of the season. But it shouldn’t be like that HE bad. Outside of flashes, Brandon Miller still can’t find his rhythm. He showed potential to carry teams’ offenses last year, and Lee needs to include him more in off-ball minutes.

My colleague Matt Alquiza already closed some areas of how Miller has had to adapt his game this week. Shooting more threes, making fewer mid-range attempts. However, we can go a little deeper and: Really He begins to understand what’s behind his disappointing start.

According to Synergy, Miller’s offensive role has changed significantly. His catch rate dropped from 25% to 16% last season, while his off-screen field goal attempts increased from 8% to 17%. These adjustments changed the type of threes he shot; 60% less from the corner, more from the top of the attack. Why did Lee implement these changes? It’s a calculated trade-off: risk versus reward. Although these appearances have a lower percentage, they are harder to defend and more sustainable over the course of the game. This means a move away from the traditional “role actor” style, although it takes time to get used to.

NBA.com’s advanced shooting data also shows that Miller is experiencing a classic shooting slump, especially on “Very Open” attempts. I’m confident his shooting will return and the short-term struggles will eventually pay off.

23-24: Tight 2-4ft 23.2% (0.8 Trials)
24-25: Tight 2-4ft 14.3% (1.6 Trial)

23-24: Open 4-6 ft 34.3% (2.5 Trials)
24-25: Open 4-6 ft 40.5% (4.1 Trials)

23-24: Very Light 1.8+ft 44.3% (3.0 Trials)
24-25: Very Light 1.8+ft 26.5% (3.8 Trials)

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