By Sam Perley, hornets.com
2015-16 Review | Frank Kaminsky
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Tipping Off
Taken with the ninth overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft out of the University of Wisconsin, Hornets forward, Frank Kaminsky, had his fair share of ups and downs during his rookie season in Charlotte, much of which is to be expected from any first-year player in the league. Kaminsky’s rookie season with the Hornets was as much an adjustment on the court as it was off, yet the former Naismith Player of the Year Award winner made noticeable improvements over the course of the year that clearly indicate he should be an integral part of the team’s roster moving forward.
NBA Career Begins
Like most NBA players beginning their rookie seasons, Kaminsky got off to a somewhat slow start in Charlotte, averaging 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 14.5 minutes across 16 games by the start of December. Injuries to the Hornets’ rotation soon set in and Kaminsky was able to take advantage of some increased playing time, eventually breaking through with a career-high 23 points, a then career-high-tying seven rebounds and two assists against the Boston Celtics on Dec. 23. Another 20-point performance at home against the Los Angeles Clippers on Dec. 30 helped pushed Kaminsky’s monthly scoring average to a season-best 10.0 points on 41.9 percent shooting to go along with 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 24.8 minutes.
No Rookie Wall For Kaminsky
It’s quite common for rookies to hit a drop-off in production sometime around the NBA’s midseason point as the grueling schedule and increased travel requirements start to catch up to many first-year players. There never seemed to be much effect on Kaminsky though as his best stretch of the season came during a four-game span from Jan. 15-20 when he averaged 15.5 points on 55.6 percent shooting, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists for the Hornets. Kaminsky finished off the pre-All-Star Break schedule with averages of 7.6 points on 40.1 percent shooting, 4.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
As the roster started to get healthier in the second half of the year, Kaminsky’s minutes started to dip a bit but he still managed to average 7.2 points on 42.6 percent shooting and 4.3 rebounds in the final 29 games of the regular season. He made his second career start in a 105-100 road win over the Brooklyn Nets on Mar. 22, pouring in 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks. Kaminsky’s best outing of the season came towards the end of the year as he finished off a three-game stretch of double-digit scoring performances with 18 points and a career-high 11 rebounds to tally his first career double-double against the Washington Wizards on April 10.
Amongst all qualified rookie players, Kaminsky finished 10th in scoring (7.5 points), 12th in rebounding (4.1), 11th in three-point percentage (33.7 percent), fifth in total three-pointers (68) and 12th in blocks (0.53) all while playing in the 14th-most minutes (21.1). Kaminsky’s 81 games played were tied for second most in the league by any first-year player behind only Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns (82) and he came within just three votes of being named to the NBA All-Rookie Team. He also joined New York’s Kristaps Porzingis as the only rookies to record at least 600 points, 300 rebounds and 50 made three-pointers this season as well.
Kaminsky Shines with Big Playoff Performance
Although he had an abundance of postseason experience after two Final Four runs at Wisconsin, the NBA playoffs were a step-up for Kaminsky in terms of intensity. He totaled just four points in Charlotte’s first two games against the Miami Heat and struggled to contain the red-hot shooting of Luol Deng. Despite the adversity, head coach Steve Clifford inserted Kaminsky into the starting lineup for Game 3 in place of the injured Nicolas Batum, a move that resoundingly paid off as the rookie exploded for 15 points and six rebounds in a 96-80 win for the Hornets. Kaminsky finished his first NBA playoffs with averages of 7.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 27.3 minutes, which included starts in the final five games of the series.
2016-17 Season Outlook
Kaminsky will enter the second guaranteed year of his rookie contract and could eventually see his team option for the 2017-18 NBA campaign picked up at some point during next season as well. During the Hornets’ exit interviews on May 2, Kaminsky not only reflected favorably on his first NBA season, but also mentioned how he’ll look to improve on things going into next year.
“It was a lot of fun. I don’t know anything else, but a lot of guys on the team talk about how this is the best team they’ve ever been on as far as the personalities and guys on this team and I can attest to that. It’s been a lot of fun; so many good people on this team. I’ve learned so much from so many different people. I think that translated onto the court and I think we did better than a lot of people expected for us,” said Kaminsky. “You can always get better as a basketball player. I want to work on my body, work on my game. I want to work on everything. I’m the kind of guy who hates losing and now I have to sit the whole offseason thinking about losing [Game 7 to Miami]. I want to get better so I don’t have that feeling happen next year.”