Is it time to panic about the Charlotte Hornets' defense?

The Charlotte Hornets have been one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA so far this season. In five games, they haven't given up fewer than 113 in any of them, and gave up a whopping 144 to the Miami Heat earlier this week.

Charlotte is allowing over 124 points per game, and only four other teams in the league are worse than the Hornets in that regard. Quite frankly, the defense has been worse than advertised.

With the Hornets declaring before the season that they were finished wasting away in the lottery year after year, this is a distressing development. Is it one that can be fixed?

How the Charlotte Hornets can fix the defense

Charles Lee has decided that starting rookie second-round pick Ryan Kalkbrenner is the best way for the Hornets to win games. Offensively, he's been terrific, shooting 90 percent from the field. Defensively, it's been a challenge with him on the floor at times, facing the likes of Nic Claxton, Joel Embiid, and Bam Adebayo.

Even though Kalkbrenner blocks shots, the team's defensive rating is still just 121.6 with him on the floor. His offense is offsetting his troubling defensive numbers, but those shooting numbers will regress to the mean.

Kalkbrenner learning the best way to play defense at the NBA level isn't the only issue that the Hornets have. Health has once again been a story with this Hornets team, albeit a sad one.

Brandon Miller has injured his shoulder yet again, which was the worst-case scenario for a franchise that has been stricken by a plague of injuries in the last half-decade. His length on the wing is key to what Charlotte wants to do on that end of the court.

The Charlotte Hornets will have a better defense by midway through the year

If Miller's injury isn't as severe as the one he suffered a year ago, it will go a long way in fixing some things. Once he is lacing them up again, the Hornets should stop letting opposing teams do whatever they want offensively.

Any hope of LaMelo Ball being a really good defensive player is out the window. Charlotte knows that, so surrounding him with solid defenders is part of their team-building identity.

Kalkbrenner will get there. Miller could get healthy. It's not quite time to panic about Charlotte's defense...yet.

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