A day of firsts for the Hornets
Charlotte held its initial full-team practice of training camp just prior to the unveiling of the first half of its 2020-21 schedule
It took a while for it to register and set in for James Borrego.
That's what happens when you coach your team in practice as a whole for the first time in nine months. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the Hornets have injected some life into the roster with their offseason acquisitions.
But just being able to get on the court together in preparation for real games represented another step towards restoring about as much normalcy as possible given the circumstances.
“I'm extremely excited,” Borrego said Friday after beginning his third training camp at the helm. “I guess it really hit me this morning that we are back. Putting a practice plan together, meeting with my staff, and then seeing these guys on the floor for the first time as a team, it was a thrill to be out there coaching them. It’s the first step in our long journey together. And that's what we talked about.
“It just feels like we are back in rhythm now. So it feels good to be back out there.”
Borrego said he’s still in the feeling-out process, unwilling to give a sneak peak into the potential starting five or any other multi-player combinations. He did divulge he paired Gordon Hayward and LaMelo Ball together and also had Devonte’ Graham and Terry Rozier playing as a tandem, but wasn’t about to dangle any other morsels to be dissected.
One player in particular wasn't around to get it in with his teammates, though.
Borrego said Malik Monk tested positive for COVID-19, but he was asymptomatic. Monk hasn't been with the team for the past few days and it’s not immediately clear when he will be allowed to return to the fold.
According to the NBA's coronavirus guidelines, any player who tests positive and is asymptomatic must quarantine for 10 days and then must follow up with two negative tests conducted at least 24 hours apart. After being cleared by the team physician, the player must practice by himself while wearing a mask for two days upon returning to the facility.
Add it up and it amounts to nearly two full weeks.
“We look forward to getting him back soon,” Borrego said. “We are following all the protocol, making sure he is healthy No. 1. … This is new for everybody, so we’re learning from the league what we have to do. And they are going to try to do everything they can to keep us safe and the player safe, and make sure that they are healthy to return.”
While it's unclear when Monk will be able to practice, we do know when the Hornets' 2020-21 seasons tips off. The NBA released the first half of its regular-season schedule Friday, providing the Hornets with a roadmap through March 3 when they conclude the first half of their schedule in Minnesota. (The remainder of the schedule, which spans March 11-May 16, will be released at a later date.)
Charlotte tips off its 2020-21 campaign Dec. 23 against the Cavaliers in Cleveland before returning home to host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Dec. 26 at Spectrum Center. No fans will be permitted to attend games at the season’s outset, but the Hornets are hopeful that could change sometime in the coming months.
The NBA made sure each team is scheduled to play 37 or 38 games through the season’s first half and each will have 17 home games at minimum with maximum of 20 home games.
Among the Hornets’ schedule highlights:
They are scheduled to play in one nationally-televised game, coming on Jan. 8 when LaMelo meets Lonzo and the Pelicans in New Orleans on ESPN. Guessing there will be a minuscule amount of hype heading into that one.
There are nine sets of back-to-backs.
On four occasions, they will play two consecutive road games against the same team in the same city. That would be vs. Philadelphia, Toronto (in Tampa, Fla.), Orlando and Indiana.
February is brutal. The 15-game slate commences on the road against the Miami Heat followed by home dates with Philadelphia, Utah and Portland in a matter of five days. Throw in a matchup with Denver and ending the month with four games to start off a six-game road trip, and, well the Hornets really have a difficult stretch to navigate.
Speaking of February … Charlotte native Steph Curry, who missed last season’s game in his hometown after breaking a bone in his hand in October, makes his lone appearance in the Queen City when Golden State visits Feb. 20.
They play 20 of their 36 home games before the All-Star break.
Just seeing the schedule provided another boost of sorts. Coaches are creatures of habit and finally knowing when and where they will play is going to make it easier for Borrego to devise his daily approach.
“Our staff and our front office,” Borrego said, “does a good job of breaking down the schedule.”
That entails looking at the number of times they play on consecutive nights per week and per month, then using that to assist in building out the plans for practice, film study, extra time to shoot and/or work with coaches, etc.
“We are playing fairly consistently throughout the next two months,” Borrego said, “and I think the biggest point here is we've got to keep bodies right, keep our minds moving forward and really be balanced in our schedule and how we put this thing together.”