Concerns Over Ace Bailey’s Fit in Charlotte | What are The Hornets’ Draft Priorities?

Concerns Over Ace Bailey’s Fit in Charlotte | What are The Hornets’ Draft Priorities?

Today on the Lockdown Hornets podcast, we tell you exactly where we are at this point in the draft process. We’ve been very vague where we are just about vibes and feelings. We finally define exactly where we are. Plus, is this guy at number four going to be known as Jeff Peterson’s guy? How likely are they to be here next year? I know that that’s the sickness talking, but just bear with us on this episode of Locked on Hornets. You are Locked on Hornets, your daily Charlotte Hornets podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. In a minute, cuz we live. It’s Locked On Hornets, part of the Lock On podcast network. It’s your team every day. Thanks for making us your first listen. We’re free and we’re available anywhere you get your podcast and that includes YouTube. There’s Doug Branson. You can find him on his Substack everyhornetsboxcore.com. He also hosts Locked on NBA. And I’m Walker Mail. You can listen to me on WFNZ every weekday from 12 to 300 p.m. Real quickly, I want to tell you that this episode is brought to you by Prize Picks. We appreciate Prize Picks for helping us out every single day on the Lockdown Podcast Network. Uh, use code lockdown NBA to get $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup. Use code locked on NBA again to get $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup. We got more draft conversation to give to the people and I think today is the day where we finally tell you exactly where we are on VJ Edgecomb versus Trey Johnson versus Ace Bailey. I do want to get to some Ace Bailey comments though. Before I do that, I need to get to some Doug Branson comments. It is your podcast after all. Talk to me, Doug. How are you feeling? It’s our podcast. It’s not my podcast. Well, compared to you and my podcast, with all due respect to Matt Hayes. Well, I was going to say compared to you and Ace Bailey, right? Instead of getting to Ace Bailey’s comments first, we get to your comments first because it’s your podcast compared to Ace’s. But I guess it’s ours. I apologize. Doug, how are you feeling? Oh, I’m just scared that you set this show up by saying you’re going to pin me down. you’re going to pin us down on who we want here because then you know then we can’t change it, right? Then we’re just on the record and we can change it. And we’ve now evolved from the Scoot Brandon debate into a debate on three guys. So now we’re going to make cuz I’m looking at the comments every episode that we do on the draft. You have people that say it’s got to be VJ and then you have other people that say it’s got to be Trey. There’s just no question. There there’s a third group that’s like if you don’t take Ace and he’s available then you you’re an absolute So I just I can’t wait for this whole thing to shake out and the Hornets end up taking Derek Wayne and even Conaniple and yet well yeah that would be the Tan Salon example. We’ve seen Jeff Peterson do this before. There’s even some Conanipple conversation here. I I I I think can’t forget the Canipple. I I still think he’s on the outside looking in. I I I do think that there’s going to be NBA draft analysts that continue to tell you the Hornets should be considering Khan Canipple at number four. So, no, a couple things. We can change it. I told you in the cold open, if you want to replay it, you want to go back, you want to rewind, go ahead and do that. I said at this point in the draft process, doesn’t mean that we can’t change it. So, I I gave I gave us an out. I did say yesterday with Natada that it felt like this might not be as toxic. And I I do truly believe it’s not nearly as toxic as it was in 2023. Hey, we contributed to it, baby. We were all in on Scoot. It just felt like that was going to be the pick and then Brandon Miller picked up so much steam so fast. Oh god. Okay, he’s in consideration and he deserves to be the pick. So may maybe there’s a little toxicity. It is draft conversation surrounding the Hornets after all. But I did want to define where we are at least at this point. We can change it. Don’t worry. We got a cushion. we can get out of this. But at this point in the draft process, before we tell you our thoughts on VJ Edgecomb as it pertains to his battle with Trey Johnson, let’s get to some Ace Bailey comments as well. Doug, you were not in this media scrum because there’s only so many things that you can do up in Chicago. So, I know you were in front of Ace Bailey for a little bit, but you missed my favorite comment from Ace at the combine. And so Ace Bailey was asked about his confidence, was asked about his shot selection, and he said, “What might be a bad shot to you, you don’t work on it, I work on it.” And said other things that would express his confidence out there on the basketball court. Now, look, I love all of that in terms of a this player is really fun type of way, but I can tell you right now, Charles Lee, Greg Papovic handing the keys over to the next head coach in line, whoever it’s going to be. You could even whether it’s Washington, whether it’s Philadelphia, it doesn’t matter, man. Those coaches are going to watch some of the shots that he took at Ruters and they’re going to tell him, “I’m fine. I’m glad you practiced those shots at Ruters. We ain’t doing that here. Okay. It’s going to be very Patrick Euing like do you do you practice that shot? And if he says yes, then it’s going to change to you do not practice that shot anymore. We practice threes. We practice getting to the rim. We’re going to give you some postup opportunities maybe at 67 so you could take advantage of some mismatches with smaller guys on you, but we’re going to have to get you stronger because these are some strong dudes, fire hydrants that get up under your hip in the NBA. I just can’t imagine that Ace Bailey, despite him telling you that he practices those bad shots, creating separation off of double teams, like he talked about taking those shots even when two defenders are on him. I I mean that that’s the kind of stuff where you have to weigh, okay, how much of this is bravado? How much of this is just the confidence that isn’t really all that big of a deal because it’s going to be coached out of him um coached out of him once he gets to an NBA team? How much of it is defiance? How much of it is this is how I roll? And if I get power, real power as a young player in year two or year three, then buddy, this is what I do and I plan on doing it. I’ve been saying since the beginning that I think the interview process with Ace Bailey is going to be more important than anything that they watch on tape or anything that they see in person for workouts. And I think there’s the possibility that Ace goes into that interview and sort of moves the Hornets away from from even considering taking him if he were to fall because I don’t know that this is a great situation for Ace Bailey to come into if he wants a ton of shots. I mean, his player comps are KD, Paul George, Jason Tatum, and Carmemelllo Anthony. And honestly, like when I when I look at his talent that he showed off at Ruckers and his shotmaking ability, and you know, that sort of is a prerequisite. You have to think you’re going to be those players. You have to comp yourself if you’re in that ace Bailey mold. I’m just not sure that if he comes to a team with LaMelo Ball who’s making a lot of money to take a lot of shots and Brandon Miller who is a number two overall selection and expected to also shoulder a lot of responsibility in this offense that that would be a great situation uh for him. So I don’t I don’t the confidence doesn’t bother me. I do have concerns that this franchise, this locker room is not the best locker room for a for a character of his size and confidence. Um because you I I could see him going to Philly with a lot of veterans who have won a lot of basketball games or I could see him going to San Antonio and walking down the halls and seeing a lot of Larry O’Brien trophies and maybe just being humbled slightly enough to where someone could get through to him, hey, you need to understand situationally what’s happening here for the first year or two. None of that’s going to happen in Charlotte. All he’s going to look at are a lot of losses and saying, “You drafted me high. You lost a bunch of games. I can help you win games. Give me the damn basketball. Yeah, it comes down to you. You go to San Antonio as a team that has a lot of infrastructure. They’ve always had a good culture. Ever since I’ve been watching basketball, they’ve had different iterations of the team. You had a couple of different uh Tim Duncan teams and then now here you have Wimby, you got Darren Fox. Now you got some veterans, but still seems to be a well-run team. I know they’re extremely lucky. I’m trying to get over it, but I’m just telling it like it is. So, we get to this version of San Antonio. Is that a squad that can I don’t want to say deal with Ace? Because it it makes it seem like Ace has like bad character. Like, it’s not bad character at all. I don’t want to paint that picture. I just want to be clear. It’s just, man, if if Ace Bailey is defiant in the way that he chooses his shots and he’s going to explore that running within the confines of a normal NBA offense rather than trying to spot up three. And I’m not even trying to take the uh unique play style, not even unique. I’m not even trying to take his individual agency away from him in every single aspect. It’s just there. I don’t I think all 30 coaches are going to look at some of the shot selection from him at Ruters and say, “Man, we can’t do that. Not right now. Like we This is how you survive early and then maybe we can do the ISO stuff where you do the fadeaways and things like that. But I it that that’s my question. It it’s a lot like yours. Does Charlotte have that organization that gets that out of them or does San Antonio or does Philadelphia? These teams have to make that decision for themselves. Right. If if the Hornets had LaMelo Ball and they didn’t have Brandon Miller, sign me up for the Ace Bailey experience. If the Hornets had Brandon Miller and didn’t have LaMelo Ball and they had like a defensive point guard that didn’t need the ball in his hands a ton, like a Chris Dunn, then sign me up for having a sort of a a Jason Tatum, Jaylen Brown situation where you have two guys that kind of do similar things on your wing and then you have a point guard who doesn’t need the ball as much or can just catch and shoot like Derek White. So, sign me up for that experience. love that. That’s not the situation that Ace Bailey would be walking into theoretically unless they were to make some kind of draft, you know, night deal, but but also like we can talk about San Antonio and and Philadelphia and the veterans and the championships, but also good franchises are not immune to this problem. May I present to you the Golden State Warriors who have been operating on two timelines. one with Steph Curry and Draymond Green and Jimmy and now Jimmy Butler and this other one with Jonathan Kaminga who can’t get on the floor for Steve Cerr despite, you know, he takes a lot of wild shots and he makes a lot of wild shots. He he makes a lot of tough shots but Jonathan Kaminga loves him some Jonathan Kaminga to the point where Steve Curry got mad at Jonathan Kaminga because he was ignoring Steph Curry. Steph Curry in the middle of a basketball game. Wouldn’t pass it back to Steph Curry who has a thousand rings. Um, so like you know that these problems aren’t immune or or these franchises that even have a bunch of championships aren’t immune to these problems. You have to find the right guy for the right moment. And I’m just not sure that Ace Bailey actually I am sure that Ace Bailey is not that guy for the Charlotte Hornets right now. Well and and last comment we can go to or last example. You go to San Antonio, we can all remember the Stfan Castle. I’m a point guard stuff and we had episodes about it. Do you just take the guy and say, “Okay, that’s fine. This is what you think you are. This is what we drafted you to be and this is how we’re going to play you.” And Stefan Castle ends up winning rookie of the year for the way that he played last year, being this defensive juggernaut at the point of attack. Just being uber aggressive, getting downhill, making the right kind of play more often than not as a rookie, at least in that space. So with San Antonio, they just said, “Okay, you’re not a point guard. We’re not going to use you as this primary ball handler. We’re going to use you in a different space. Does Charlotte consider Ace Bailey? Okay, fine. You practice that shot. Fine. You want to be the offensive hub where we give it to you in the uh out there on the elbow, out there on the perimeter, and we’re running plays and designs for you. That’s what you think it’s going to be, and it’s not, and you’re just going to have to be okay with that. Like, it’s that’s where it can go either way on it. It’s It’s a tough It’s not impossible. There’s There’s a lot of talent here. I don’t want to give up on the talent, but it’s not nearly as clean as VJ Edgecomb. It’s not nearly as clean as even Trey Johnson, who also likes himself some Trey Johnson shooting the basketball, right? There even there’s a middle of the ven diagram. I’m not saying they’re the same, but there is some stuff where they meet in the middle of the ven diagram very much so between Trey and Ace. And yet Trey seems like a guy that has the kind of confidence and plays the type of role that would fit better with this system than what Ace Bailey would. Yeah. I asked both of those players about the fit and I’m just telling you like the answer from Trey Johnson was much more, you know, I I can help by be Trey was like, I can help by being like off the ball, you know, draw attention, open up things for uh for LaMelo and Brandon, like recognizing that sort of dynamic. I don’t know that that same recognition was was there for Ace Bailey. And again, in fairness to Ace Bailey, you got to find if if the Charlotte Hornets are not the right team for him, then they’re not the right team. Ace Bailey can go and be successful with another franchise that doesn’t already have two guys who are high draft picks. They’ve invested a lot in, and you’ve got to get the ball to them. It’s gonna be fascinating, man. It’s it’s July 26th is uh excuse me, June 26th is the NBA draft. Like I know everybody likes to say it’ll be here before you know it. Yes, that’s true. We also have a long way to go. Okay, there it’s it’s a long way to go before we get to draft night. Coming up next on the Lockdown Hornets podcast everywhere. We’ll talk more about Jeff Peterson and if this next draft pick is going to be known as his guy. How much is his success tied to whoever he selects at number four? We’ll get to that in just a moment. Locked on Hornets. This episode is brought to you by Prize Picks. Basketball season it’s at its peak with the playoffs heating up and now is the time to put your sports knowledge to work with Prize Picks, the top platform for daily fantasy sports. Prize Picks makes it easy. You just pick more or less on at least two player projections and then you’re in. Whether it’s points, rebounds, or assist, you’ve got a shot to win up to 2,000 times on your entry. This week, you might be looking at a certain prop with Shay Gilis Alexander in game seven. Same thing with Nicole Joic. Could you be looking at that? What’s going to happen with the Celtics Knicks series? Does it get interesting in Madison Square Garden? 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Even if we don’t think he fits, it doesn’t necessarily mean that’s what Jeff Peterson thinks, but I have a feeling that’s what Jeff Peterson thinks. I don’t think he’s going to take Ace Bailey either. But I don’t know who he’ll take over or between VJ Edgecomb and Trey Johnson. I think VJ probably fits the ideals of what they want to do. The defense, the uh dog in him type stuff, which Trey Johnson has that in him as well, but it just feels like VJ is more of that Jeff Peterson, Schlotkin, Charles Lee type of guy. But Trey Johnson is going to be highly intriguing. My question about this as it pertains to Jeff Peterson, Doug, I I look at this draft and I look at last year’s draft and I think everybody in the world knows this draft is much much stronger than what we saw in 2024. In fact, VJ Edgecom or Trey Johnson, there’s is it a probability that they’re in consideration for the first overall selection last year? I it’s damn it’s damn sure a possibility but VJ over Zachary Reese it’s at least a debate VJ Edgecom Trey Johnson over Zachary Reese it’s at the very least a debate I guess you can refute that in a second I believe that to be true with it being a much deeper NBA draft to me I think last year you take Tan Salon you swing for the fences you’re drafting sixth overall in what’s considered a weak draft whatever right okay you you played the cards you were dealt. You got to hit. It doesn’t absolve you of missing, but you got to hit it. It’s or it’s it’s whatever, right? It it’s it’s Tan Salon. We’ll see how it goes. I feel like there’s a lot more pressure writing on this one. One, just because of good oldfashioned time, but also there’s a real debate on who to take here between talented players, and there’s a real risk of one of these other guys that you pass up going to a different team and just balling out. But the difference is these guys that were in consideration, you could have taken them and they were a real debate on whether you should have taken them, right? It’s not this Giannis thing where they’re taking 10 spots after Cody Zell or Oh, Hornets should have taken Giannis. That’s not real. This is very real. I think there’s a lot writing on the Hornets overall this offseason with this pick, but also Jeff Peterson. Yeah. I mean, they have to nail this draft. I mean, you go back to the 2021 draft and, you know, missing on Book Knight and Kai Jones and how much that set this franchise back like missing one draft really uh hampers you in your ability to because you can’t even do anything with those players to help to, you know, just rebound off sometimes. Sometimes you have bad drafts and then you’re like, “All right, but we can we can convince some other team to take this player and just get something back in return.” They got nothing in return for those picks. Um, so you know, you got to nail this draft. And on the on the thing with would they be the number one overall pick? I don’t think so. I just because like e Risha Sheay and Sar had some physical gifts that I think teams still would have wanted over VJ and Trey. I think they would be surefire number three picks in that draft. I think Cooper obviously would have been a number one overall. I think Dylan Harper would have been a number one overall. But I think this draft still it starts at one two and then and then does drop off somewhat significantly but you can still I think get a high level role player uh and possible all-star in both Trey Johnson and uh VJ Edgecom and then with Ace Bailey I think there is some like all NBA potential if all of the if again if the situation is right which I don’t think it is in Charlotte. Okay. in terms of is he going is VJ or is Trey going to be Jeff Peterson’s guy? I think that is the right question to ask because when you look back at the Ton draft, I was looking at some quotes from Jeff Peterson on draft night and he’s here’s what he said about Ton. Urgent competitor, especially on the defensive end, extremely selfless. Um Cliff was high on him. Uh we want guys giving effort night in and night out. He’s an amazing human being. He’s going to do everything in his control to maximize himself. He is a maniacal worker. So if that’s what they loved about Ton, I just think that’s and they’ve said that about other players. When they brought Josh Green in, they said similar things about Josh Green. This is they want people who create chaos, who work hard, and and that’s I just think that’s who they’re going to target. And the the tough part is that I think VJ and Trey are going to give them both a little bit of those intangibles and then they have to ask themselves really, do I want to immediately improve the offense or immediately improve the defense and how many boxes can I check with these guys? And I think VJ checks a few more boxes just with his I think the physicality that he plays with his body type. I think there’s so much more of a probability that VJ gets stronger than Trey Johnson gets stronger. And so if you’re looking for physicality that they don’t have with really LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller on down the lineup, um then you can get that with VJ. I think you have a much better chance of getting that with VJ than Trey. Well, Ed, a couple things. We we go through the intangible part of this, right? It’s not even like you have to interpret anything that Jeff Peterson is saying and then try to extract, well, okay, it looks like they really care about work ethic. He told you. All you have to do is listen and then take away exactly what he’s telling you. He told you at exit day, we care about the intangibles. That’s what he told you. So, we don’t need to I don’t know. They seem to care about character, you think? Cuz that’s exactly what he said at the podium. So, it’s like compared to what with with VJ talking about the Charlotte Hornets and saying, “Man, I just want to go guard. Like, I’m I’m down. I want to be I want to be a better def I I I want I just want to go guard. I know a lot about that team. I want to help out and be a better defender than your typical rookie is. You know, I want to play the right role.” Just pay attention. It it it’s why it seems so much like VJ Edgecomb is the guy at this point. Who knows what happens. I just told you long way to go before we get to June 26, but that’s why it feels like VJ is that guy. And then if VJ Edgecomb is the pick, there’s a lot riding on this for Jeff Peterson. I’m not going to tell you that his success it is connected with how VJ Edgecom turns out. That’s more of your NFL GM first overall pick at quarterback. that that’s how that works. You know, the the Tennessee Titans GM, who I forget his name, but Cam Ward being the first overall pick, his job, it it relies on Cam Ward being good, right? Jeff Peterson’s job does not rely on BJ Edge being good. But there’s a percentage on the pie chart that does. There’s a little bit of it that relies on him being good, just like I think a smaller percentage does for Tan Salon. But there is a little sliver on that pie chart that does rely on Ton working out compared to some of these other guys. Where am I? Where are you? I’ll tell you where I am and then we can go to break. Where I am right now is I’ve got VJ number one. I’m with you on the whole checks checks off a few more boxes stuff. The Hornets need a lot of help. They need a lot of help in a ton of different facets of the game, right? I’m tired of watching dudes not get to the rim and finish. It’s a real issue. I’m tired of a lot of things. I I This is the point. This is the point. Everybody has their breaking point. Everybody has the thing that they would rather fix first. What do you value more? yada yada. All that. I’ll tell you what I value more. I’m tired of watching guys not be able to get to the rim. And then if they do get there, I’m tired of seeing these guys not finish very well. VJ Edgecomb coming in at 6’4 without shoes. Okay, we dodged one bullet with him not being 6’3, 6’2 and a half, which was on the table with what everybody was talking about. The dunks are stupid good. The athleticism is crazy. I just think he’s flat out strong. Of course, every NBA player, every single rookie that ever steps foot in the green room needs to get stronger. I think VJ Edgecom is just a flatout toer of a running back protecting the basketball when he gets into the paint and just not getting knocked off his spot. I don’t think contact bothers him at all. I think he’s here for the smoke defensively too where he’ll just stonewall you and go chest to chest and move his feet. I think his ball handling is fine enough to be secondary, tertiary, and continue to work on it. You flip that over to Trey, we we do have a shot creator on this team. LaMelo is a shot creator. It doesn’t mean that I’m not going after Trey. Like, I’m not saying, “Oh, we already have this. Hell, it’s okay to have multiple shot creators.” But we do have at least one, right? I don’t think we have a VJ Edgecomb. I do know that the strong set, the strong skill set for Trey Johnson, I do know that we have that. We We could use more, but we do have that on the roster. That’s where That’s where I get to and that ultimately has me selecting PJ. Okay, I’ll tell you I’ll tell you where I am next. That’s the greatest tease ever. Let’s do it. I almost went into it. It was a false start because I almost went into it and I looked down at the time and I’m like, let me I want to let it breathe now. And I I I backed you up in a corner there. So, I I’ll take responsibility. That wasn’t a good table set. Coming up next on the Locked On Hornets podcast. Is it really my show? He’s everywhere. Not anymore, buddy. It’s the Walker mail show. Uh, we have a mock draft. We have Doug’s take exactly where he is on the shooting guards. We got plenty of other stuff. YouTube comments, sicko satchel. Oh my god. Still, we got to fit a lot in in this last segment. LO. This episode is brought to you by Game Time. There’s nothing like the NBA playoffs. The intensity, the buzzer beers, the fans losing their minds. It’s the kind of atmosphere you must experience live. And this year’s matchups are already delivering if you want in. Game time makes it fast and easy to get seats, even for the biggest playoff games. Prices on the app actually drop closer to tip off. And with killer last minute deals, panoramic seat views, and no surprise fees, game time is a total gamecher. And I do love that I can see my exact view before I buy with no surprises. And that game time guarantee, you know exactly what you’re getting. It’s the best deal. bill. And if you find a better price in the same row and section, they’ll credit me 110% of the difference. That means they’ll credit you 110% of the difference. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with Game Time. Download the Game Time app. Create an account. Use code locked on NBA for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account. Redeem code LO KNBA. Locked on NBA for $20 off. Download the Game Time app today. Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. They don’t have game time anymore. We got to do it. What time is it, Doug? Game time. Game time. All right. We’re We’re gonna have to fit that in there. It’s going to be It’s going to have to be cleaner, but we can’t abandon our game time lovers out there in the Lockdown Hornets universe. More Lockdown Hornets ahead. Now’s the time, baby. Where are you on the great shooting guard debate between Trey Johnson and VJ Edgecom? Uh, right now my personal big board, I would still have Trey Johnson above VJ Edgecom just because I think that Trey Johnson has a slightly better chance of becoming an all-star player, multi-time all-star player than VJ Edgecom. And that’s not a slight on VJ Edgecom. I think VJ’s probably his floor is probably higher than than Trey Johnson. particularly if Trey Johnson does struggle to put weight on, then I think that kind of puts him in into a category of like six-man scores that you’re not going to be able to depend on a lot. But if he does fill out a little bit, um then, you know, I I think he can be uh you know, somebody that can put up 30 35 a Tyler Hero, you know, somebody maybe that starts sixman but is ultimately um a starting level player in the NBA. So saying that though, I think the better fit for the Hornets at this time is VJ Edgecomb because he does check a few more of those boxes. And man, I would love to watch even if you were just to tell me, Doug, VJ Edgecom is never like this Russell Westbrook comparison. It’s not going to happen. He’s not a point guard. He’s not going to be somebody that just like racks up triple doubles and all NBA and MVP. That’s out of the question. But I’m going to guarantee you an Alex Caruso. You know, again, when you have LaMelo Ball on this team, if they’re sold on LaMelo Ball and they’re sold on Brandon Miller and that’s where they want to move forward with the franchise for the next couple of years, then sign me up for an Alex Caruso. That sounds perfect to me. Um, I I got to be honest, at number four, I’d probably take Trey Johnson if I was guaranteed Alex Caruso. I do love Alex Caruso. I love him, but I’d probably take the swing for the upside there. He has been a He has been a massive a massive part of Oklahoma City. He has been He has been He’s been very good. He’s been very good. Again, if you’re if you’re telling me Hornets pick four and LaMelo Ball doesn’t exist and Brandon Miller doesn’t exist, then I’m going Ace Bailey or I’m going Trey Johnson. I need a star. So that but that’s but the real that’s not the reality. The reality is you’re going to at some point need some defense and VJ gives you that. And if you’re guaranteeing me Alex Caruso, that’s awesome. Um, I I I feel like uh Yeah, man. I feel like maybe VJ Edgecomb to me, if I’m looking at some player comps, is is he a more explosive Derek White? Like I I look at what Derek White did with San Antonio, you know, maybe some more initiating that he did. He’s got to learn to shoot a lot better than he has. I mean, well, but this is the point with Derek White coming in. I’m glad you brought that up because Derek White wasn’t a great shooter coming in, right? like he the the second, third, fourth year he shot 34%, 36, 34, 31, 30. Like so maybe there’s a more explosive cuz Derek White isn’t as explosive as uh BJ, but I’m with you though like that kind of defensive do a whole bunch of little stuff for you to help win you basketball games. Is he a much shorter even as explosive as VJ is not as explosive as Amen Thompson where he just does all the defensive stuff? I’m in Thompson is crazy. I I It’s not the same right now, but you get the idea at that two spot. Um yeah, Trey Johnson, his shotmaking though, like it’s it his shot fake. My I think if I were to go with my favorite skill sets right now, my my my favorite things about these guys, Trey Johnson has a mean shot fake on the perimeter. He makes you look stupid where you’re trying to recover. Oh, Trey Johnson’s a shooter. I need to fly at him. And if you don’t have a disciplined closeout, you’re you’re out of bounds. by see you. You’re in the second row. They’ll fly by you and he’ll just uh rip it. Defender flies by and then he drills the shot because he’s a great shooter. That kind of thing for Trey off ball. Absolutely tantalizing. Yeah. Other than Trey not getting to the rim and like I mean his dunk number was super low. Other than that, so he’s like a two and a half level scorer, but like man that he looks for tough shots. He looks for them and then gets under, you know, like him and Ace Bailey. Ace Bailey does too, to be fair. Ace Bailey looks for tough shots as well. Yeah. Um, no, I just No, I And no, totally. I just think that Trey would be more willing to be to start his career being a certain thing and then develop into another thing. I think Ace, and this is not a criticism, this is just a hey, this is how it is. Ace knows exactly what he wants to be from moment one when he steps onto the floor his rookie season. He wants a certain role. I don’t think the Hornets are prepared to give him that role unless again if on draft night we hear the announcement they’ve moved LaMelo Ball for some number of picks and something else and then they take Ace Bailey, that wouldn’t shock me. Um my my game has changed, right? My last thing, my favorite thing about VJ is he’s really good with his left hand and I love it when guys can finish with both hands in the paint. Like it reminds me Shay Gilis Alexander was excellent at that coming out of college. Miles Bridges is still awesome at that finishing left and right and I get those I remember seeing that on tape coming out of college from those guys. VJ is the same and I think that matters a ton when you’re trying to finish at the rim. So, you’re strong and now you could take advantage of whatever angle that you’re given, whether it’s on the right side of the basket or the left side. Like, he’s really good finishing with his left hand. So, those are my two favorite like just little tiny skills that each of these shooting guards have. All right, you take us away, Doug. You want to go comment section, mock draft section. You have ownership of both. This really is yours. It’s our podcast, but these are your babies. Where do you want to take us next? I know we’re out of time, so sorry. It’s not even the sicko satchel. I put sicko satchel in the graph graphic, but I was going to read some YouTube comments. It’s actually that’s like the sicko vomit bucket uh because it is people I’ll read one just because uh some of them were really funny. Let me pull it up here. U so this is from nur4441. If God was real, he wouldn’t have cursed me with the sad never-ending onslaught of disappointment that it is being a Hornets fan. Tony Davis 9472 says there’s nothing 100% except death. So knowing the NBA is in partnership with betting, we can’t just say rigging isn’t happening or would never happen. Ex uh especially when we have evidence of it happening um in the past. Steven Lewis Dil Steve says this let me uh this took me back to Adam Morrison good college career but an NBA bust. I’m not saying the Cooper flag would be a bust but Charlotte needs to learn how to draft. I keep remembering how they traded away SGAA for Miles Bridges. This has to be the second worst draft trade for the Hornets since Kobe Bryant. And yet, no one mentions it, Steven Lewis. I And I’m not I’m not arguing with that. I don’t want anyone to mention it, but it is funny that they they hammer the Hornets all the time for the Kobe thing. SGA is about to win an MVP and hopefully a game seven to move OKC into the finals uh into the conference finals. But, uh, no one mentions the SGA Bridges deal, and I’m so glad. No, no, no. Nobody ever mentions that. And I didn’t lose my mind when that happened on draft. I mean, I’m we mention it here. I’m just saying like on the national sphere. No, you’re right. Actually, you you are right about that. And it’s probably because they don’t want to have the other uncomfortable conversation that then accompanies. Oh, dude. People people do not want to have that combo. Let me tell you right now. There was some NFL draft stuff with Mike Green where it’s just like, why did Mike Green, this crazy talented edge rusher, fall all the way to the second round? Well, go look at his history. But nobody has to talk about it because they didn’t draft him until Baltimore did. Um, by the way, I want to know how many Hornets fans out there have been turned or to atheism or nihilism because of being a fan of this team. We just had one person at least affected so much where they just went full nihilism and uh this give you some kind of ism. You will have by the time if you stick with this team for four or five seasons, you will develop communism, atheism, nihilism. Just assign me. Do you know I don’t want the freedom to choose my next team. Just give me any other team. Government, please tell me who I’m going to pull for. Please, just you you tell the team who they’re going to draft. Hell, you already think NBA is a communist association. You think Adam Silver is just telling every single one of these teams, “This is what you’re going to do. This is what you were born to do, buddy.” All right, mock draft time. What you got? Uh mockdraft time is going to be the ringer. They updated their mock draft based on the draft order. And the Hornets at number four after Ace Bailey is taken third by the Philadelphia 76ers. The Hornets select VJ Edgecomb with uh the fourth selection. And uh their major player con for him is Contavius Caldwell Pope bitten by a radioactive spider. It’s not Alex Caruso, but it’s KCP bitten by a radioactive spider. Yeah, I went with the Derek White comp. Derek White was much better at shooting in college, but I was more so going. That’s on there. That’s on the ringer as well. Is it really awesome? Yeah, they’ve got a small It’s a small one for Derek. It’s a small one for Victor Eladipo, who I think Natada mentioned yesterday. Chris Dunn is bigger than that, which would be ouch for me. Um, he was unplayable in the playoffs. And then Eddie Jones, how about that comp? Eddie Jones, that would make a lot of Hornets fans. He was an allNBA player for the Charlotte Hornets. I would take that. Steals and threes, baby. Three and D. I I think one of my favorite shots in history is just the so clean Eddie Jones finger roll that’s nothing but net. It It’s a finger roll that just goes straight 12:00 on the clock and then drops down to six right splash almost don’t even hit net. It’s so clean. Give me that BJ. Now, here’s the conversation that we have to have in the future. If the Hornets are dead set on VJ Edgecomb, if Jeff Peterson falls in love, he might have to get on the phone with Philadelphia because there’s no guarantee that Philadelphia is going to take Ace Bailey. They might take VJ Edgecomb. And now your decision is in between Ace Bailey and Trey Johnson. So if the Hornets want to control their own destiny, if Jeff’s the kind of guy that says, “All right, I’m 100% on a player and I want them no matter what,” they might have to pick up the phone. Josh Green get it done. Maybe Josh Green number four. Who knows? That would be clean because VJ would be taking that spot. That’s what I’m saying. Um, all right. That sounds like a juicy topic for next week. You’re going to have to tune in, folks. We’ll be with you every weekday right here on Locked on Hornets, part of the Locked On podcast network. We appreciate everybody for making us your first listen. Again, we’re free and available anywhere you get your pods. That includes YouTube. There’s Doug Branson. He’s been working hard this week, man. Relax this weekend, buddy. You know, you deserve it. Getting all that audio, covering all the shuttle times, giving us all your draft takes. Every hornetsboxcore.com locked on NBA and locked on Hornets very own Doug Branson. Taking it easy this weekend. I’m Walker May. Listen to me. WFNZ every weekday from 12 to 300 p.m. Have a great weekend. We’ll be back with you on Monday.

The Charlotte Hornets may finally be narrowing in on their No. 4 draft pick — and VJ Edgecombe is gaining ground. We break down the latest intel on Tre Johnson, Ace Bailey’s polarizing interviews, and why Jeff Peterson’s legacy may hang in the balance.

In this episode of Locked On Hornets, Walker and Doug bring clarity to the Hornets’ draft dilemma by officially declaring where they stand in the VJ Edgecombe vs. Trey Johnson vs. Ace Bailey debate. After weeks of vibes, it’s time to plant a flag — and Edgecombe may be the one checking the most boxes. From Ace Bailey’s combine confidence and questionable shot selection to Tre Johnson’s fit alongside LaMelo and Brandon Miller, this episode breaks down how each prospect meshes with Charlotte’s current core.

Doug points out that Trey Johnson might have the higher ceiling, but Edgecombe’s defensive intensity and finishing strength could fill an immediate need. The hosts also debate whether Charlotte has the right infrastructure to shape Bailey into a star or if his personality and playing style might be better suited to a veteran-laden franchise like San Antonio or Philadelphia.

Jeff Peterson’s preferences loom large — could VJ be “his guy”? And what happens if Philly grabs Edgecombe at No. 3? The guys even float trade-up scenarios to secure their preferred prospect. Plus, fan comments bring the nihilism and nostalgia as Hornets Nation reflects on past draft misfires.

Don’t miss this deep-dive into the Hornets’ biggest decision of the offseason. It’s a can’t-miss episode full of insight, spice, and big-time takes.
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