#24 - Charlotte Hornets

Kevin C. Cox/ Getty Images North America

What I’d Do:

Jarnell Stokes – Tennessee

6’8” (7’1.25” wingspan), 263 lbs., 01/07/1994 (20 years old)

In the few hours since I told Chris that I would be taking Jarnell Stokes at #24 for the Charlotte Hornets, word has come down from The Man Himself that my pick essentially doesn’t matter and they might have already settled on Mitch McGary.  I’m sure I’ll compare the two at some point in this piece but I’m okay with disagreeing on the player, because we agree on the team need at big man.


Jarnell Stokes has an NBA-ready body, with the requisite strength and high motor. He’s probably a center due to his paint-oriented offensive game and allergy to jumpers (only 37 attempted last year), and he has to play with energy to compensate for his undersized height for the position at 6’8”. His wingspan matches up well with any opponent but he needs to learn Roy Hibbert’s verticality, as he rarely keeps his hands up or challenges on drives. He’s more of a hustle player than he is pure ath-a-lete and plays below the rim on both ends with average leaping ability.

The lack of leaping ability may affect him while finishing in traffic and challenging at the rim but his athleticism manifests itself in agility and aggressiveness from the center position. He’s active on rim-runs, beating other bigs down the court, and has above-average hands for a big to catch the transition lead-passes and finish on the break. His strength, particularly in the lower body, will help him play position defense in the post and he’s good at sealing his men for early posts and dip-ins. Stokes really needs to slide his feet to draw the charge at the next level if he’s not going to be able to challenge shots above the rim, which is something he could add to his game with his agility.

It’s on the glass where Jarnell Stokes will have an NBA career, as he’s an elite rebounder on both ends. He averaged a double-double on the season (15.0 points per game, 10.5 boards, 2.0 dimes, 2.2 turnovers, and 1.6 blocks + steals on 53.5% from the floor and 68.5% on 6.2 FTA’s), and is the best offensive rebounder on DraftExpress’s board and 6th-best defensive rebounder. His motor allows him to chase rebounds away from his area and he’s got those magnet-hands when it comes to snagging boards. If he can slide his feet on defense and step in on drives he could resemble a young Leon Powe, who also had great hands and a high motor on rim runs but was a savant at taking charges to the chest. As far as current players, maybe an energetic Chuck Hayes or Reggie Evans, as far as comps, or Steven Adams as a best-case scenario.

Stokes is a documented plus-plus rebounder and will have a role early, but his offense will need to keep developing at the next level. He’s an okay low-post player on offense, as he can turn and score over either shoulder with the jump-hook. It’s almost as if he’s been working to improve his left, as he’s emphasized it this season, and his drop-step, lefty hook move is pretty. His footwork is solid but not very advanced and he’ll need counter moves and more step-thru’s against bigger and quicker NBA defenders. He generates a lot of second-chance looks with his offensive rebounding and scored at 61.6% off of put-backs, but a (mid-range at most) jump shot down the line would help open up his offense.

It’s maybe the offensive awareness that separates Stokes from Mitch McGary. They’re really similar big men who are high-energy role players and are always active. McGary’s activity manifests more on offense, as he seems to set screen after screen and puts himself into great position as the roll-man or by cutting weak-side. He’s more agile and can use either side of the rim to help finish in traffic, as he’s two inches taller than Stokes but two inches shorter in wingspan. McGary also needs to add a face-up game at a certain point because he can’t score in the post nearly as well as Jarnell. Mitch really needs to get out and run to get easy points and scraps.

Defensively, McGary is already very good at sliding his feet to draw charges and shows great anticipation on drives. The agility disparity gives itself back on the strength-end, however, as Stokes is much better at grabbing boards in traffic and using his strong, magnet-hands. McGary is a slight step below in offensive rebounding, though he uses the agility for tap outs and seems to love laying out for loose balls. Both players really need to keep the motor running to be effective (think Kenneth Faried-lite) but I’ll take Stokes’s strength and health for Charlotte.

The Charlotte Hornets drafted a big man at #4 last year in Cody Zeller, a 7’ center who struggled for most of this season before becoming more aggressive down the stretch. He only averaged 6.0 points, 4.3 boards, 1.1 dimes, 1.0 steals + blocks, and 1.1 turnovers per game in 17.3 minutes (42.6% FG, 73% on 2.4 FTA’s) but could be expected to take a step forward in development this offseason to possibly start alongside franchise-big Professor Al Jefferson. Starting power forward Josh McRoberts has already opted-out of his contract, opening up a starting front court spot that could be offered to Zeller or a free agent signing.

Professor Al has been one of the best low-post scorers in the league for 10 years now (!, wow I’m old). Always-underappreciated because of it, he finally got some love in the last year from the national media and in free agency from the then-Bobcats, and proceeded to drop a 21.8/10.8 this season on 50.9%. We knew what he’d give us on offense, making other bigs look foolish with his arsenal of up-fakes and counters to counters, but it was the team improvement on defense that brought the Bobcats to the playoffs.

The team finished 5th in Defensive Rating (!!) under first-year head coach Steve Clifford. Charlotte was 6th this season in Opponents’ FG% and 2nd in FTA’s allowed while forcing the 3rd-fewest turnovers as a team. They were a very good defense overall as a unit, a criticism that was often thrown at Big Al throughout his career due to his own defensive shortcomings. Coach Clifford took a roster without many defense-first players and got good effort out of his bigs, as they were 7th in defensive rebounds per game and 8th in blocked shots.

The Hornets’s cap situation is pretty wide-open, with a solid $20 million in potential space if they renounce Luke Ridnour. They’re going into this offseason with a core of Kemba Walker/Gerald Henderson/Michael Kidd-Gilchrist/Cody Zeller/Al Jefferson, with Bismack Biyombo and Gary Neal still on the books. Chris added Nik Stauskas to the team at #9, giving them a potential starter at the shooting guard with unlimited range and the ability to handle the ball and let Kemba play off-ball. They have the cap space to sign a max player at any position, really, and/or add depth to the bench.

Jarnell Stokes is my pick at #24 and provides depth at the big man position for the Hornets. He’ll be an active backup center to Big Al who will grab a bunch of boards off the bench and probably commit a bunch of fouls too. Biyombo might have already stagnated as a player before signing his second NBA contract but his shot-blocking abilities will complement Stokes’s active hands and voracious rebounding, unless Charlotte signs another big.

Playing Al and Jarnell together will be tricky for the first season, at least, as they’re both ground-based rebounders who don’t really contest at the rim. I’d like to see Stokes hit the weights when he hits the Queen City and tone the upper-body a bit, as he could be an imposing player in the league and a nice enforcer for Big Al if he matches his lower-body strength. He’ll be a fan-favorite when he keeps possessions alive on the offensive glass and the Charlotte fans should enjoy seeing his offensive evolution over the years.

What I Think They’ll Do:

I think Mr. Ford already killed that suspense. There’s not that much separating McGary from Stokes but the back injury would scare me off if I were GM and would swing my decision at #24. McGary is way more agile and could play the Euro-style but Stokes is much stronger and could bang in the 80’s and 90’s. Hopefully he can develop an offensive game and maintain the motor, and stick in the league as a really poor man’s Nikola Pekovic and not end up as a Craig “The Rhino” Smith.

Crazy Draft Day Trade:

Not likely. Mitch McGary it is. I’m sure GM Rich Cho called around about moving up with this pick or exchanging it for a first next year but alas.