Charlotte Hornets: Marco Belinelli Proving Why Management Traded For Him
Marco Belinelli is showing exactly why the Charlotte Hornets traded for him
Marco Belinelli is never going to be a “star” for your team. That’s just not the type of player he is. Now, that doesn’t mean he isn’t a phenomenal talent in his own right, because when put in a proper system and structure he’s shown he can be a valuable addition to any team. And this year that lucky team is the Charlotte Hornets.
In the offseason, with the losses of Courtney Lee and Jeremy Lin, Charlotte was looking for an upgrade at the two-guard position. So with the Kings looking to move Belinelli, the Hornets pounced on the chance to get someone coach Steve Clifford has really admired from afar.
[via AP]
“I’m a huge fan of Marco,” Clifford said. “The thing I like about him is he has played his best in the biggest games and he can do a lot of the things we lost offensively with Jeremy and Courtney.”
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With Jeremy Lin (and to a lesser extent Courtney Lee) gone the team was left without two of its main offensive cogs. That has left a huge hole for Belinelli to fill; yet he has lived up to every bit of expectations that were thrust upon him to start the year.
We’re only 30 games into season and Belinelli has already essentially become the third scoring option in Hornets offense.
He’s averaging 11.0 points per game – which is behind only Kemba Walker and Nicolas Batum – while shooting a stellar 45.7 percent from the field, and a red-hot 45.3 percent from deep.
In the month of December he’s stepped up his game even more, scoring 12.3 points per game while shooting 51.4 percent from the field, and 45.7 percent from behind the arc. But it isn’t just his scoring that’s been put on notice; instead it’s his playmaking ability that has really stood out.
Belinelli has been asked to be more of a facilitator and shot creator on the Charlotte Hornets, and that’s really allowed him to thrive in Steve Clifford’s offense.
Whether it’s coming off of screens (scores 1.15 points per possession), creating out of the pick and roll (1.11 points per possession) or draining shots from behind the arc, Belinelli has just continued to show off his well rounded skillset nightly for the Buzz City hopeful.
Now, that brings us to a popular question among avid basketball fans, and that’s why is Marco balling for the Charlotte Hornets, but he struggled some last season with the Kings?
Question: What do you think is the biggest factor in Marco’s success early on this season, as opposed to last year in Sacramento?
Steve Clifford: I think here he’s got a role that fits him, you know as the first perimeter player off the bench. And you can play through him; he can play in the pick and roll, he’s a good decision maker, he puts pressure on the defense, and he’s also very good in the catch and shoot. So I think he fit our team well. An we had a need at that position, and obviously he’s done a terrific job.
Marco Belinelli really has been terrific for the team. As a matter of fact, the Hornets highest scoring lineups all include him in them. In 56 minutes played together with Nicolas Batum, Kemba Walker, Frank Kaminsky and Cody Zeller they score 139.3 points per 100 possessions (Net Rating 23.7).
And in the 65 minutes played alongside Spencer Hawes, Frank Kaminsky, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Ramon Sessions they’re putting up 109.8 points per 100 possessions.
Those numbers prove why Steve Clifford trusts Marco Belinelli. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Belinelli is regularly closing out games ahead of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. With his ability to spread the floor and make sound decisions with the ball, Belinelli has become a key staple to help the Hornets finish games. He has really been the X-Factor for the team early on in the season.
Now whether he can sustain this successful play or not remains to be seen. But one things for sure, the Hornets got themselves the two-guard they were looking when they decided to trade for Marco Belinelli in the offseason.