Charlotte Hornets forward Tidjane Salaün. Roderick Boone roboone@charlotteobserver.com
Now that Tidjane Salaün is a professional basketball player abroad on this side of the pond, returning to his native country for a brief respite would be understandable.
Catching a match on the pitch at Parc des Princes during Paris Saint-Germain’s run to its first Champions League title? Gobbling up pastries while eyeballing the French Open action at Roland Garros? Grabbing a front-row seat at the Bugatti Circuit in Le Mans for the latest version of the historic French Grand Prix?
Salaün was having none of it. The Charlotte Hornets forward did not spend a nanosecond in France since the 2024-25 regular season wrapped up in April.
Instead, the 19-year-old can’t get enough of the offseason regime cooked up for him by the Hornets’ performance staff, which has him effectively serving as a gym-rat with a strict focus on one thing: basketball.
“That’s something normal for me,” Salaün said. “I’ve done this now for the last three years — I did only work for the summer and that’s something I like. There’s no regrets. Just sacrifice some cool stuff for a better future I can say.
“So, yeah, I’m just proud of myself to have this mentality to continue to work, because that is going to help me be better for the next season.”
Charlotte Hornets forward Tidjane Salaün. Roderick Boone roboone@charlotteobserver.com
The latest step in Salaün’s training is taking place this week out here in the desert, preparing to play with the Hornets in the Las Vegas Summer League for the second time. And he’ll do it while sporting a noticeably bulkier frame than the 6-foot-8, 207-pound figure he was listed at for a rookie season that had ‘good moments’ and not-so-good moments.
While Salaün showed flashes here and there, he averaged 5.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 20.7 minutes per game, draining only 33% of his attempts and 28.3% from 3-point range.
Not exactly the best of numbers for someone taken sixth overall in the NBA Draft.
For the better part of the last 12 weeks, he’s focused on getting stronger and faster, also honing his playmaking skills and passing ability. The personal boot camp apparently is providing the early wanted results.
“I feel more in control, like I can have good balance and finish on two feet throughout the finish and not just the passes,” Salaün said. “So, that’s the best improvement — I added balance. The other difference I can say is I feel a little bit faster.”
The coaching staff likes what it’s seeing from Salaün.
“Yeah, Tidjane’s had a great summer,” said Hornets assistant Chris Jent, who’s serving as the team’s summer league coach. “He’s working hard, working hard on his body. He’s a worker, as we all know, so he’s going to bring the intensity.”
Fine-tuning everything is the key for Salaün. Mastering certain individual tasks and drills can only help so much if it’s not all put together on the court while also continuing to improve other aspects.
“He just has to kind of not want everything now, just let the game come to him,” Jent said, “and I think having a guy like KJ (Simpson) out there on the floor with him and having some familiarity will help him.
“He’s really got to learn how to communicate. Communicate his offense, his defense and kind of let things come to him.”
Jent gets no argument from Salaün.
“That’s completely true,” Salaün said. “That’s what I was saying about being on balance, it’s also slow down and just read the defense, read where my teammates are on the court. So, it’s just about decision-making. If I have to drive, I drive, make the good passes, read the location to shoot.”
Tidjane Salaün (right) stands next to Charlotte Hornets teammate KJ Simpson at summer league practice in Las Vegas. Photo courtesy @hornets
Simpson, Salaün’s fellow draft mate, knows him nearly better than anybody else on the Hornets’ entire roster given their time together in Greensboro suiting up for more than a few G League games with the Swarm. They’ve formed a pretty good relationship, and Simspon enjoys witnessing the incremental growth.
“Tidjane, he’s been in the gym as well,” Simpson said. “He’s been working. Obviously, people are visibly seeing he’s gotten really stronger, and I think his confidence, obviously you know it’s there. If not, it’s just going upwards and he is just great. We both had our rookie years together. We had our great moments and then we had our moments where we learned.
“He’s been getting really better at that, just understanding the things that he needs to get better at for his individual self and the things that he can do to help the team. He’s just an overall joy to be around. Me and him, we came in together, so our chemistry just gets stronger and this is a great testament we get to show not only the Hornets but everybody who has their opinions and whatnot about the reasons why we got drafted and add value to the team first. It’s just that we’ve been getting better.
“So Tidjane, he’s been making great strides. His approach has always been there, and he’s a true professional. I’m excited to be doing this with him.”
Likewise for Salaün, and that journey begins when the Hornets tip off their summer league schedule on Friday against the Utah Jazz at the Thomas & Mack Center.
“I’m just going to play,” Salaün said, “and as soon as possible show it.”
Then, once his summer run is over, it’s back to his regularly-scheduled program. But as Hornets coach Charles Lee noted to him, it must continue to be with a purpose.
“For sure, work out, but still work smarter — that’s even better,” Salaün said. “We talk about being more efficient with my shooting mechanics and my defense. I’ve worked a lot on being stronger, faster on the lateral movement. And for the other parts, he said he trusts me and just do what you have to do and we’ll see you for the next season.
“But just continue to work hard, and he trusts me. He’s even showed up to some of my practices.”