Why Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego is so emphatic about physicality

Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego constantly uses the word “physicality.”

Not just in Thursday’s post-practice critique of his team failing to retrieve a lot of loose balls in the Wednesday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, but ever since he got this job in May.

So I asked Borrego why “physicality” is such a buzz word for him.

“It’s a big deal for me. Physicality just says who you are, at your core, at your spirit. It’s a fundamental core principle that I believe in,” Borrego said.

“For us to be the type of team we need to be and want to be, we need to be that. This team is just not going to go out and outscore teams every night. this team (will not) go out and drop 120 every single night. We don’t have that type of team.

“We’ve got to do it with toughness, defense, physicality and the whole.”

I think that comes from having been an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs, but I also think it’s about how Borrego was growing up as an athlete in Albuquerque, N.M. When I interviewed Borrego’s mother for a profile, one of the many things she told me was Borrego’s coaches described him as a Kevin McHale-type high school players Someone who (at 6-foot-6) would just wear you out in the post.

I’m thinking a guy who played little in college, but clealy maxed out his athletic ability with toughness, probably won’t have much patience with far more gifted players when they go soft.

This closing quote from Borrego on his team and physicality, going into Friday’s rematch with the Bulls at Spectrum Center:

“Some teams have it more built in than others. We’ve got to manufacture it sometimes. Sometimes I’ve got to find the right lineup just to bring it.”

Couple of other observations heading into Friday’s home game:

▪ Here was Borrego Thursday on whether he’ll make lineup changes going into Friday:

“My tendency right now is to go make changes all over the place, but we’ve got to stay disciplined, stay poised, and give this group another shot to respond.”

My guess is Borrego starts the same five Friday, but you’ll see a tighter, more defined rotation. As I wrote Thursday, the signs point to an expanded role for rookie Miles Bridges.

▪ The Bulls now have three key players out, with forward Bobby Portis (right knee sprain) added to Lauri Markkanen and Kris Dunn. I asked coach Fred Hoiberg at shootaround Friday how you keep a team on point when facing that many injuries so early in a season.

“There is nothing you can do about it; it’s part of the league, injuries happen. The thing that doesn’t change is you have to go out and play with great effort every time you step out on the floor, and that’s what I’ve been really proud of with our guys,” Hoiberg said. “I thought we made a lot of hustle plays (against the Hornets) and battled better on the glass.

“As far as how we’ll deal with injuries, there are going to be lineups where we’re small, guys playing at positions they really haven’t played yet.”

Hoiberg is already starting a rookie in Duke’s Wendell Carter, at center. Another former Duke player, Jabari Parker, is listed as starting power forward tonight for the first time as a Bull. They signed Parker as a free agent this summer.

The Bulls front line would be Carter at 6-10, Parker at 6-8 and Justin Holliday at 6-6. Cameron Payne, the fill-in starter at point guard, is coming off a career-high 21 points against the Hornets Wednesday, when he made seven 3-pointers.

Let's block ads! (Why?)