NBA Free Agency 2019: 5 offseason targets for the Charlotte Hornets

CHARLOTTE, NC- MAY 11: Charlotte Hornets General Manager, Mitch Kupchak introduces James Borrego as Head Coach of the Charlotte Hornets during a press conference in Charlotte, North Carolina on May 11, 2018 at the Spectrum Center. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Kent Smith/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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PORTLAND, OR – APRIL 10: Jake Layman #10 of the Portland Trail Blazers reacts against the Sacramento Kings on April 10, 2019 at the Moda Center Arena in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Cameron Browne/NBAE via Getty Images) /

3. Jake Layman

Jake Layman, despite significant improvement this year, doesn’t quite break the Portland rotation. Shooting from the forward positions is so valuable in the modern NBA and is even more valuable in the postseason, but Layman was the first casualty of the Trail Blazers’ playoff rotation. He totaled 20 minutes across three rounds of the playoffs, even as guys he had played more than during the regular season were forced into prominence.

For the Hornets, Layman represents an option to create salary space by moving on from Marvin Williams via trade. In large part, Williams’ primary function has been providing the spot-up shooter that coach James Borrego believes the starting lineup needs, despite the rest of his game having regressed significantly. Layman has the potential to act as that shooter, and while he’s not a plus defender, he does at least give the Hornets an appropriately sized option to throw at the power forwards they’ve struggled with for years. Overall he’s not a perfect fit for a Hornets team that needs to focus on the defensive end more than anything, but he’s an acceptable one, and given that the Hornets have gone without any player at all of that kind in recent years to the point of playing Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Frank Kaminsky out of position to their own detriment to cover up that weakness, he should be a priority.

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