Evaluating Charlotte Hornets rookie Tidjane Salaün’s first NBA start

On Tuesday, Tidjane Salaün made his first NBA start for the Hornets against the New York Knicks.

Salaün had come off the bench and shown solid results before being included in the starting eleven. While it may still be a preseason, it should be a pretty solid indicator that Salaün will be on the bench for at least rotational minutes this season, which is quickly approaching.

In his three games so far, Salaün has reached double-digit points, but has also had more than two three-pointers in each game, which is very impressive for his size. It appears his shot is not a fluke, but a reality that Hornets fans should get used to. Let’s take a look at his overall game from Tuesday night.

Salaün showed impressive consistency when throwing the ball from a distance. He made 10 three-pointers in his first three games and added another three three-pointers on Tuesday night. He started the game 3-4 from three-point shots, but finished the game 3-7 from distance, which is still a decent rate for the rookie.

Salaün’s shots were one of the key factors in him receiving consistent playing time while earning the trust of head coach Charles Lee. The 19-year-old freshman is shooting 43.3% from three on 7.5 attempts. Not only is the volume of his shots impressive, but also the consistency and confidence with which he shoots the ball.

Although Salaün had a really solid game, he still showed some signs of his expected rookie mistakes. There were a few instances where he risked the defense and allowed his defender to score on him. He also had two plays in a row where he missed a wide-open transition lob and then dropped his teammates’ pass on the following play, resulting in a turnover.

Another area that Salaün particularly struggled with is lifting the ball. This is a part of his game that the Hornets would like to see improve early in his career because it would really advance and expand his game, making him almost unpredictable. He has confidence in his three-point shot, which is a positive, but he can’t get too enamored with that shot because that causes him to become predictable and dependent on that shot to make an impact. These are all areas where I think Salaün will soon improve as he already seems to be a quick learner.

The biggest surprise of his game was undoubtedly not his performance, but the number of minutes played. 37 minutes in a game is a lot, but in a preseason game that’s almost unusual. However, I believe it is perfect for Salaün and is really smart of Coach Lee as it gives him the most experience possible before the regular season begins.

It’s important for a 19-year-old rookie to have the opportunity to start with LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller and be able to learn from his mistakes without the fear of sitting on the bench or being on the leash. I believe this trust between player and coach is crucial in his rookie season as he builds confidence in himself and his abilities on the basketball court.

Overall, I would give Salaün a B+ grade because he played pretty solid and competed defensively in his very first start. I was impressed with his aggressiveness along the boards as he collected eight rebounds, just two shy of a double-double. Furthermore, Salaün’s confidence is still fascinating to watch as he is not afraid of anything in front of him.

He gets a slightly lower grade because of the small mistakes he had during the game, but he didn’t seem to let that faze him as he made that contested floater to tie the game late in the fourth quarter.

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