When the Charlotte Hornets returned to the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft to pick Kay Jones, they knew they had a long-term project in their hands with insanely high.
The talented potential attacking/midfield player from the University of Texas was the team’s pick for the first round of the night. Earlier, they added another rookie player, James Bucknight. Bucknight was seen as a player who could provide an immediate return on investment in Charlotte, while Jones was seen as a player who needed some spice before he was ready to contribute to the NBA.
With the 2021-2022 season over, none of the players had much of a chance to help the Hornets as most of the minutes allotted were reserved for veteran players. With a new head coach in Charlotte, all the younger players in the system are presented with the opportunity to prove they are ready to become a regular member of the rotation. We’ll take a look at the signs of improvement we’ve seen from Kay Jones over the summer.
We usually start these pieces by discussing the possibility of firing the lead, and this would be no different.
The spacing between floors is very important in today’s game and with the way Charlotte’s roster is created, being able to stretch the floor is critical to watching playtime. The Hornets already have two players on the roster who wouldn’t really be able to deploy the defense in Mark Williams and Mason Plumley. It is difficult to form an effective squad around more than one player who is not at least an outside threat. You could argue that Williams and Jones have the highest rise and the most talent, so the two players receiving the bulk of the minutes should be in the center, but as things stand now, Plumley is expected to be a regular member of the rotation. However, photography will be a major area to watch in Kai’s development.
In Jones’ second season at the University of Texas, I saw a jump in proficiency from three. He jumped from 29% to 38% in his sophomore college season, but only attempted 58 triples in his entire college career. He launched in the 1960s both seasons as a team player from the free-throw line. He was never expected to become a deadly shooter, but there is still the potential for Jones to become a threat from behind the arc.
In his first summer league game against the Indiana Pacers, Jones spent most of his time playing all fours alongside Nick Richards or Mark Williams. Spacing was an issue for the offensive side of the field as the defense was able to block paint due to not being threatened by at least two shooting players. Jones misses ten times in this game, and some miss badly. He looked uncomfortable on the floor in this match and only seemed to resort to three lifts when he got the ball. Although it was nice to see him try and take jumpers at really low risks, he seemed to settle down often. Once Richards closed out the Summer League starting in Game Three, Jones began to appear more relaxed. He and Williams started splitting the minutes in the penalty center and as a result the attack had much better spacing and flow. He didn’t have the best shooting performance in Las Vegas, but the potential to develop into a respected shooter is definitely still there. Considering that he didn’t start playing basketball until he was 15, it’s really impressive that the seven-legged player has as much shooting touch as he actually does. I think this will continue to be an area to focus on improving going forward.
Now let’s jump into an area on the offensive side where Jones is really effective. Its ability to squeeze the edge and end contact through contact is incredible. You can always count on him for some special finishing touches when he steps onto the court. His athletic style and wingspan are exactly what you want to see in a big man working on the edge of the rim in today’s league. He came out of school as a very skinny kid, but you already saw how much muscle he put into one season of career development the way he showed up in Vegas. This added strength combined with his unrealistic athleticism make him a killer combination when it comes to attacking and tightening through defenders.
One of the most impressive aspects of the Kai game is its large handle. Jones has no problem putting the ball on the floor and attacking the basket. I’ve seen this over and over again during the Summer League and all of the last year in Greensboro. Its confidence in the grip leads to the beautiful finish on the rim and many free throw attempts. In the limited minutes he spent in Charlotte last season, he had a free throw average of 0.575. Going back to his need to work on his shot, his driving ability will lead to many more attempts on the line, so he needs to improve his free throw percentage to become a more efficient player. He makes really quick decisions when receiving the ball and often finds himself tearing up and taking his defender to the basket. Being a former superstar on the track, he’s usually one step ahead of his cannons and is able to get to the edge. As it continues to add strength, you should see the development of a better finishing package.
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Based on his grip and driving ability, the area for improvement is his passing and creation on the ball. Although he’s seven feet tall and would never have been asked to be a primary builder, finding his open teammates out of his engines would add another layer to his game and make him more dangerous. As defenses adjust to his driving, they’ll start sending in assists early and sooner, hampering his chances of hitting the edge, showing off his sport and finishing. When this starts to happen more regularly, he will need a counter. This could be finding exposed shooters in corners or cutters that dive into the basket. We haven’t seen much of it in regards to this, but it will definitely be an area to watch over the next few years. Improving his passing readings and accuracy will only allow him to reach the edge at a higher rate where he has already proven to be deadly. He hasn’t been playing basketball that long compared to his peers, so he should be able to learn how to read defenses at a higher level and know where to go with the ball faster.
As we discussed with Bryce McGuinness, Steve Clifford returned to Charlotte as the man in charge confirmed the end of the defense in court. Proving that you can be trusted on defense is key to getting minutes as a young player. Fortunately for Jones, he has all the tools to be a great defender at the NBA level. He has unbelievable footsteps to keep up with smaller, faster players and insane athleticism to pair with impressive wingspans. He has demonstrated the ability to be a very versatile defender who can handle many missions and cover plans. Given what we’ve already seen of him and his physical gear, it looks like he’ll be able to handle fall cover, keys, and strong hedges with the ability to come back and be protected.
One of the things we saw several times in the Summer League was Jones’ willingness to protect the edge with impressive timing and jumping ability. He had more than a few fierce blocks leading to transitional opportunities for the Hornets. He has shown a very strong defensive awareness when it comes to taking turns on the assisting side and is really quick to recover when he takes a wrong move. His athletic style and wingspan allow him to compete in edge shots at a very high level. Shawn Bradley has the highest mass percentage in NBA history with an average of 7.83%, and Kay Jones averaged 5.2 while in Texas per sports-reference.com. Maintaining that rate against NBA defenders will certainly be a big challenge, but he has plenty of room to grow in defense. As he learns from a good NBA defensive coach at Clifford, he can replicate that collective success and become the NBA’s edge protector. The more comfortable he is with the plans and speed of the professional game, the more effective we can see him.
One of the easiest ways to get the big players off the ground during prime time and in the playoffs is to spread the floor and have the big player constantly on high-ball screens. The faster and better the ball player is at attacking the basket, the more difficult it is to keep up with the big player. We’ve seen this situation play out over and over again with Rudy Gobert in the playoffs even though he’s one of the best shot-blockers we’ve seen in a while. Now you could argue that his team’s defensive issues have more to do with perimeter defense than Joubert, but that’s a topic for another day. Jones demonstrated footspeed and mobility to be able to withstand these scenarios. There are examples of him getting hit on the spot and giving up a corner in the drive, but there are also plenty of examples where he outruns the attacking player in his positions. As long as he continues to improve on the field, Jones should have no problem staying on the court when the game slows down and offense is rampant. Continuing to add strength to downtrodden drivers and learning the intricacies of the NBA game should allow him to become a more influential overall defender.
Steve Clifford indicated in his introductory press conference that he wants the offense to maintain the tempo they’ve enjoyed since LaMelo Ball joined the team. Defensive rebounding is a key element in letting the attack go at a fast pace because it allows players to drop in after a stop if the team has men they can trust to get the job done on the glass. Jones showed he could be an excellent rebel. He’s mostly based on his sport up to this point, but with more strength, he could improve. One of the most important stats to look at is which team has the advantage in rebounding and this becomes even more important when eliminating the opponent’s second chances and coming out quickly in a transitional style of attack you want to play. The Hornets have needed help in the rebound department for quite some time now, and Kay Jones might be just what they need.
Kai has shown significant growth since just the first year during his five summer league games. Demonstrate a higher level of defensive awareness, a stronger grip, and faster decisions when getting the ball up front. He is already a strong player in finishing the ball on the edge and is a strong threat outside the capture range. He has more work to do to become a respected NBA-level shooter and passer, but there’s still plenty of optimism. Both his former and current coaches and teammates care about his work ethic and dedication to basketball, so I don’t think you can write off any skill improvement over the next few seasons. Getting Clifford to trust him enough to give him regular minutes in Charlotte would give Jones more reps and a chance to unleash his high potential.
If you missed our previous versions, click over here For the piece on JT Thor and over here A deep dive by Mark Williams. Our latest piece covered rookie Charlotte in the second round, Bryce McGuins.
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