Charlotte Hornets head coach Charles Lee is relishing the start of training camp, utilizing the extended practice time to fully implement his vision. Lee believes instilling these habits now will give the Hornets their best chance to compete consistently in the demanding NBA season. By DIAMOND VENCES
Just mentioning it brings a sheepish grin, sparking a flurry of memories.
As hard as it may be to fathom for some, including those who’ve followed the Charlotte Hornets closely for the better part of the past decade, there’s only one player on the roster who’s experienced the bulk of the ups and downs since 2018. And he can’t wait to experience more of the former rather than the latter.
Miles Bridges is entering season No. 7 and still gushes about the place where he’s spent most of his young adult life suiting up for the Hornets.
“Man, I love the city of Charlotte,” Bridges said. “I’m happy to be here. I’m just hoping to reward the city with some wins. That’s all I’ve been talking about since I’ve been here. I think this is the year to do it.”
With all the additions in the restructuring of their roster, ranging from the drafting of four rookies to the acquisition of Collin Sexton, that’s the growing feeling around the Hornets these days. And if they are going to truly end the NBA’s longest postseason drought, Bridges is going to play a key role, just as he has throughout the preseason — including Wednesday’s 145-116 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at First Horizon Coliseum.
In his latest tune-up preparing for the 2025-26 campaign, Bridges was extremely efficient and showed just how integral he will be to the Hornets’ success. Buoyed by feasting in the first half, scoring a team-best 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting and knocking down 4 of 6 attempts from 3-point range, Bridges posted 29 points to go with 10 rebounds and five assists.
He did it all, even catching a pair of impressive alley-oops from star point guard LaMelo Ball, and had success against fellow Michigan State product Jaren Jackson Jr.
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges follows through on a slam dunk during the second half against the Memphis Grizzlies at First Horizon Coliseum. Brian Westerholt USA TODAY NETWORK
“He’s a former defensive player of the year, so whenever I have that matchup, I always want to … that’s my boy, so I always want to go at him,” Bridges said. “But even though it’s preseason, I’m still trying to ramp up for the regular season and create good habits early so when it comes to regular season, it’ll be second nature for me.
“And I feel like we’re doing that on defense with our rebounding as a team. Without my team, I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing right now. So, everybody’s been playing well.”
Beginning with himself.
“Yeah, I mean, he could do it all,” Ball said. “So, just having him do that is amazing.”
Ball added: “He’s definitely been setting the tone, just being aggressive, what we want him to do, getting downhill and everything. So, he’s been solid.”
For Bridges, it’s a precursor to how he’ll approach things over the coming months. He’s in tune with a roster featuring newcomers like Sexton along with rookies Kon Knueppel & Co. and has one real goal in mind.
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges dribbles the ball up the court during first-quarter action against the Memphis Grizzlies at First Horizon Coliseum. Brian Westerholt USA TODAY NETWORK
That’s getting in where he fits in.
“Just impacting the team for wins,” Bridges said. “Not just stats. I want to actually contribute to winning this year. That’s doing what I need to do. Defense, rebound and scoring the ball. I feel like I could do it all.
“But (it’s about) just helping this team out the right way.”
Charles Lee is really enjoying what he’s witnessing from Bridges. Whether it’s improved defensive intensity, honing in on player habits or digging in more than once per possession, the Hornets coach can’t get enough of Bridges’ preseason form.
“I’ve loved Miles’ intentionality defensively, first of all,” Lee said. “Him just being locked in, I think, on tendencies a lot more this year, the multiple-effort mindset that it takes to guard guys. Last game, there’s a couple shifts where I think that he’s showing a shift and he’s being active. And then he’s getting back out to a contest, and guarding a guy and keeping him in front or coming over and trying to contest and help a teammate.
“So, I just see a multiple-effort mindset from him wanting to help his teammates while also just being really good on the ball and bringing the physicality defensively, too.”
Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges passes the ball against the Memphis Grizzlies in the first half at First Horizon Coliseum. Brian Westerholt USA TODAY NETWORK
Lee also pointed out how Bridges is running the floor without the ball, embracing mismatches, and making better decisions as a distributor on the other side of the floor.
“Offensively, his willingness to play with the pass, to run without the ball,” Lee said. “We made an emphasis with him of trying … teams that are going to switch or as you’re running the floor, can we punish some of these mismatches that you get early in the possession? And I think he’s really embraced that and taken ownership of it.
“And he’s doing a really good job of just playmaking, whether it’s for himself or for his teammates.”
The trick is to still be in that same boat come April when the postseason rolls around. Charlotte hasn’t hosted a playoff game since 2016, and Bridges is focused on changing the date to something a bit more recent.
“Yeah, I’m for sure driven by that,” he said. “We haven’t seen the playoffs since when, 2015? And me and Collin were just talking about we had the most games. Me and Collin, we’re top three in games played not making the playoffs. So that’s definitely driving us.
“So for another guy to have that hunger and motivation to make it somewhat is driving me even more.”
Apparently, Bridges’ determination is oozing from his pores and detectable. By everyone.
Including Lee.
“I’ve talked to him a good amount about, just I’ve noticed his ability to set a tone,” Lee said. “A lot of guys on our team look at him as a leader. He leads by example and he’s gotten better since I’ve been here in terms of the vocal leadership, too. But because he plays so hard, he’s so durable, he earns their respect every day with how he comes out and competes.
“And I think that his effort on both ends of the floor is helping our group. It’s setting a tone. It becomes contagious with your group when you have somebody out there like that. So, really proud of the effort that Miles has given throughout the offseason, throughout training camp. It’s good to see him having some good performances here in the preseason.”