Pat Connaughton is the perfect leader for the new age Hornets

Of the sixteen players on the Charlotte Hornets roster with a standard NBA contract, three have made the NBA Finals. Of those three, only one has won the title.

That one player may not even make the opening night roster.

In early July, the Hornets traded for veteran Pat Connaughton from the Milwaukee Bucks, in a deal largely associated with the Bucks navigating the salary cap. Connaughton spent seven years in Milwaukee, averaging 6.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists across 440 games with the team.

Connaughton struggled in his final season with the Bucks, leading the team to end up moving on. In his final season, he averaged 5.3 points a game in 14.7 minutes across 41 games. His three point percentage, once something that helped propel the Bucks to a championship, hit a low in Milwaukee at 32.1% from deep. With Connaughton being set to earn $9.4 million this season and the Bucks navigating the cap to bring in Myles Turner and retool around Giannis Antetokounmpo, he became a cap casualty.

"The expectations are for him to come in and be a pro," Hornets Head Coach Charles Lee said during his media day availability. "He's won a championship and I think he understands what it takes to win at the highest level. Anything he can give to our team on and off the court in those areas that are ultimately gonna get us to where we want to be is gonna be impactful."

Lee had experience with Connaughton in the past, working as an assistant coach under Mike Budenholzer in Milwaukee for all but two of Connaughton's years with the Bucks.

"He's a joy to have around here, and I think he's gonna give our team a ton, so the expectation is for him to just come in and be a pro and compete every freaking day."

When it was time for Pat Connaughton to speak, the Charlotte media got the first taste of what the Massachusetts native brings almost immediately.

Connaughton walked out to the seats in front of the podium being empty, with nearly every remaining media member taking a quick lunch break.

"You know we can say we did this and you guys can get back to your lunch," Connaughton said, chuckling as he got the words across. After a short few questions, I asked Connaughton about the contrast of going from the high championship expectations in Milwaukee, to the lower, Play-In level expectations in Charlotte.

"It's exciting, I think this team has a lot of talent," Connaughton said. "This team has a lot of upside. It's something that I think Coach Lee, the owners, and Jeff are excited about where this team is going because of the guys who are on the team, and I've seen that over the short time that I've been here. We got a great group of guys who are continuing to learn how to win in the NBA and continue to strive to win at a high level."

Connaughton is set to be the second oldest player in the locker room, with center Mason Plumlee the only veteran older than him. He's spent time with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Bobby Portis, Brook Lopez, and several other well known NBA veterans.

"Mosy guys when he speaks, they are all ears," Lee said about him earlier. "He backs it up. On the court, in the weight room, on the training table. He's a true pro."

Lee's words stuck with me as Pat continued to talk.

"It starts with your daily habits and at the end of the day if we can look at each other and say 'Hey, we have each other's backs', we're embracing the adversity on a day-by-day, week-by-week, month-by-month basis and we are competing consistently we're gonna be a team that goes out there that the city of Charlotte can be proud to represent, and we'll be representing them no matter where we are across the year within the league."

Connaughton is the perfect leader for the new age Hornets. He's a former NBA champion who accepted his role and did whatever it took to win. He's a strong voice in the locker room that can help guide the young players to achieve what it takes to win.

Connaughton is a winner, and the Hornets should be happy to have him around.

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