On the positive side, it should be noted that Barnes on the bench was becoming necessary. The problem is that he may be encroaching on Keldon Johnson and Harper, who are the usual driving forces with the second unit's offense.
Another positive point is that Castle has given up taking open three-point shots. The result: passes to better players and assists.
Champagnie and Vassel remain valuable and fairly consistent despite the latter's return from injury.
But when your franchise player messes up every other game and your star point guard is only a third or fourth option on a title-contending team, it's hard to be consistent in your results.
When the Hornets have a true two-way point guard, they'll skyrocket up the standings like Detroit. Diabate put in a huge defensive performance on both ends. He's exactly what a team playing in the early hours of the morning during a snowstorm needs, while Victor looked like he had just been released from Jabba's carbonite: a disastrous start to the game (no desire, no energy).
Victor would do better to spend his energy on defense to impose his presence on the rebound, show his presence in ways other than just deterrence, and on offense, stop fighting for position and shoot without pressure from the spots he's given... Why on earth rush and take so many long off-balance shots after battling against a smaller, stronger defender when no one is going to block you... I don't care about Giannis and Garnet: Victor needs to take inspiration from the fakes and footwork of Duncan, Dirk, KD, and Luka. He looks like an electrocuted eel every time he takes a rushed, off-balance shot.
