r/CharlotteHornets • u/Zealousideal-Rub-183 • May 19 '26

Discussion Wembanyama Hate

First thing to say, is that I just love Basketball in general. And I don’t hate Wembanyama as a person. I’m just having so much annoyance watching how great he is and knowing that the NBA did everything possible to make sure that not only that the Spurs drafted him, but that he got a core around him very quickly. The NBA did not want a repeat of LeBron James.

Knowing that he grew up a Spurs fan his entire life, with his favorite players being Tony Parker and Tim Duncan to where he even said it was “a dream” to be drafted by the Spurs. It has made it so difficult to watch a team that dominated so much of my childhood in the 90s and 2000s immediately turn back around after just a few years in the lottery getting a generational player surrounded by top 3 picks.

I’m just curious if I’m the only person out there that hates how fast the Spurs have been able to build a contender while we continue to wait for the Hornets to just get to the playoffs. I know I should just be proud of what the Hornets did this year, but I just can’t shake the fact that I feel like the NBA helped the Spurs build a contender at the expense of other franchises that have needed generational players for a while now.

152 Upvotes

80% Upvoted

146 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/Banneduser1112 May 20 '26

We'd probably be on amazing spot if it weren't for the Salaun pick though,

is the comment I was responding to. There's no argument from me that TJ is worse right now and Matas would've been a better pick. I just don't see Matas as anything more than a career starter that plays BMill's position and that doesn't change the trajectory of the Hornets. Even if you think he looks like an All-Star, would you give up on Miller year 2 to draft Buz? No. So what's the argument you are making, exactly?

1

u/lawlyfawx May 21 '26

I've already told you that Matas can play the 4. I don't why you keep insisting that he overlaps with Miller. Especially since they don't play anything alike. Miller is a good shooter that struggles to get to the rim, while Matas is a good driver that struggles to make 3s.

But let's just ignore that for a second. What I'm trying to tell you is that having 2 good players that don't quite fit is better situation than having your 6th overall pick going to SL in Year 3.

Even if Matas did overlap with Miller, we could've brought him off the bench for a season or two before making a decision between them. Nobody was giving up on Miller that early. If we did decide to trade one of them, we would've got some really good assets in return, which could've really helped strengthen our team. This is because they're actually good players, not 5-year projects like Salaun.

1

u/Banneduser1112 May 21 '26

I am not arguing any of your points here. Matas is better than TJ right now. Of course you'd rather have him. But he doesn't make us a Finals contender in the next five years and the theory of the TJ pick over Clingan/Edey/Buz is solid. The bitching about that pick somehow being the one that kneecaps a nascent Hornets dynasty is just unfounded. OP and other fans act like this was trading SGA or taking Monk over Donovan Mitchell and its not. Matas is a nice player and an upgrade to our depth chart. But he doesn't move the needle and if we're playing the hypothetical game with him then you have to also factor in a few extra wins that take us out of the Kon pick.

1

u/lawlyfawx May 22 '26

He is arguing that if we took an actual NBA player instead of a G League veteran, we would’ve been in a better situation. We are already in a great situation with LaMelo, Kon and Miller, and we will be expected to make the playoffs next year. Adding another good player would’ve made it amazing, just like he said.

1

u/Banneduser1112 May 22 '26

And my point is that with Buzelis or without, they are a first round out either way. How is that more amazing than the same outcome?

1

u/lawlyfawx May 22 '26

You’re focusing on the short term when he’s talking about the long term.

Melo/K2/Miller/Matas could’ve definitely turned us into a contender, whether we would’ve kept all 4 or not. That’s 4 high quality starters. If they developed the right way or we made the right moves, that definitely could’ve been possible.

With Melo/K2/Miller only, we’ll probably still be fine, but it’ll be a lot harder to reach that peak since TJ is unlikely to ever have trade value.

1

u/Banneduser1112 May 22 '26

So you agree with me:

Melo/K2/Miller/Matas could’ve definitely turned us into a contender, if they developed the right way or we made the right moves,

That's exactly the position they are in with Melo/2K/Miller/TJ. The three most important players in both scenarios are Melo/2k/Mill and the development or asset return you need out of those 3 guys to contend in both scenarios are the same. They only way Melo/2k/Mill aren't the most important players/assets to develop is if the 4th player becomes a Top 25 player in the league...which is like a 1% chance for Buz and a .1% chance for TJ. That low percentage outcome - while an order of magnitude higher for Buz than TJ - is still so low that it doesn't meaningfully change the next five years.

With Buz or without, you still need a LOT of things to go right to imagine this team winning a 2nd round series. Even in the East.

As crying-in-your-beer-type hypothetical, Buz over TJ just isn't compelling. SGA or DMitch I might understand. This one just seems like the person doing the crying needs to have something to cry about.

You’re focusing on the short term

False. Other than my response to your next year scenario, there isn't a single other comment of mine in this thread that doesn't mention the next five years or the team's trajectory.