Steve Clifford still had bad days in his head after the defeat of his Hornets on the floor of the Knicks. It’s already the sixth of the season after nine games of a start to the regular season recently marked by the groin injury to Terry Rozier, LaMelo Ball’s first lieutenant.
To try to take off again, the North Carolina franchise is counting a lot on Miles Bridgeswhile his return after his ten-game suspension is impatiently awaited, this Friday, for the reception of Milwaukee.
Asked about the subject before yesterday’s meeting, Steve Clifford confided that he was not going to take it lightly to reinstate his winger given the situation and the impact he could quickly bring to his team.
“I think he will be ready to play”, did he declare. “He is able to train every day. We are well organized when he is there. He is in very good shape. He worked hard. I’ll be honest, we play almost every other day, so we were more on “every day is enough for its punishment”. Today, our problems concern the fact that we do not come back quickly enough on defense, and that we do not defend hard enough all the time. So, that’s what I spent most of my time on. But it will very quickly have a significant role.”
Team leading scorer and rebounder in 2021/22
Even though he will serve his final game suspension tomorrow when Miami hosts, Miles Bridges isn’t quite done with the law yet, as he will have to go to Mecklenburg County Court today to be interviewed after having violated the protection order to which he was subject.
If the management of the Hornets had announced that they were following the affair closely a month ago, Steve Clifford avoided the subject concerning the repercussions that this new affair could have on the sporting level.
“We have already made statements on this subject,” continued the coach. “The most important thing for me is that two years ago he was the best scorer and the best rebounder. Since he’s been here, he’s had a great attitude. He’s a great worker, a great teammate and a very, very good player. He’s back in shape and he’s going to play an important role right away. If you meet him every day, you will see that he is a team player. His teammates love him. They love that he’s back and appreciate the way he trains, works and interacts with everyone.”
The Hornets need an electric shock to move forward and the reinforcement of Miles Bridges, combined with the return from injury of Terry Rozier, could embody it.
” It is important. It’s a blessing, that’s for sure. We hope to get Miles back and be able to make a little noise afterwards”, for his part slipped LaMelo Ball. His presence will in any case not be too much considering the first opponents that Charlotte could receive in full: Milwaukee, New York then Boston…
| Miles Bridges | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2018-19 | CHA | 80 | 21 | 46.4 | 32.5 | 75.3 | 0.8 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 7.5 |
| 2019-20 | CHA | 65 | 31 | 42.4 | 33.0 | 80.9 | 1.4 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 13.0 |
| 2020-21 | CHA | 66 | 29 | 50.3 | 40.0 | 86.7 | 1.2 | 4.8 | 6.0 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 12.7 |
| 2021-22 | CHA | 80 | 36 | 49.1 | 33.1 | 80.2 | 1.1 | 5.9 | 7.0 | 3.8 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 20.2 |
| Total | 291 | 29 | 47.3 | 34.6 | 80.9 | 1.1 | 4.5 | 5.6 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 13.4 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
