Secret X-factor: The most underrated addition of the Charlotte Hornets' offseason

There's arguably nothing more important in sports than depth.

No matter how good your top talent is, if something were to happen, depth becomes more important than it ever has been before. We've seen teams crumble after losing even their third or fourth-best player because the guy behind them is unable to produce at even a league level.

While fans love to see their team make moves for the top end, elite-level players, making small moves around the margins are the ones that really bring a team from the middle of the pack to elite. Knowing that if your star player goes down, you have someone to step up in their place and continue to help the team win.

The injury bug swallowed the Charlotte Hornets whole last season, taking out nearly their entire starting five. While they had serviceable wing depth to help replace second year forward Brandon Miller, the same cannot be said about star LaMelo Ball.

Ball has played more than 60 games once in his five-year career, and has played under 50 games in the last three seasons. An added injury to backup point guard Tre Mann left the Buzz extremely thin at the guard position, leading Damion Baugh, Nick Smith Jr, and KJ Simpson to take on the primary ball-handler duties.

Before free agency even started, the team immediately addressed this, trading for guard Collin Sexton from the Utah Jazz. While Sexton will likely start alongside LaMelo Ball, he can easily slide into the lead guard position when Ball is injured or on the bench.

They then went on to re-sign Tre Mann, who ESPN's Shams Charania reported was healthy and ready for next season, giving them great backup guard depth. With Nick Smith Jr and KJ Simpson still under contract, it gave the Hornets plenty of depth at that position.

They were not done however, signing Spencer Dinwiddie to a one year deal.

It was a signing that caught many by surprise, as the team had seemingly now created a logjam at the guard position. After some time, people began to realize how important this addition would be and how safe the Hornets would be if they were to lose LaMelo Ball.

He averaged 11 points last year, primarily off the bench for the Dallas Mavericks as Kyrie Irving's backup guard. Dinwiddie has always been a terrific playmaker and averaged 4.4 assists across 79 games with the Mavs last season.

His 79 games played are another important part to note. Outside of an ACL tear during the 2020-21 season, Dinwiddie has played in 60+ games every year since 2016. He's always available, which makes his addition to a Hornets team that needs available bodies crucial.

As for his on-court play, Dinwiddie's three-point shooting is not something fans should get excited over. He shot 34.1% on catch-and-shoot threes and 37.5% on "wide-open" threes. His skills with the ball in his hands, as mentioned above, are where he really thrives.

As noted, he's a fantastic playmaker, but his scoring at the rim is an underrated part of his game. It's worth noting as well that Dinwiddie has a knack for getting to the free-throw line, where he shot 80.2% on the year.

He's a prototypical backup point guard, someone the Hornets can rely on when they see injuries or need to rest. It's leagues better than seeing a two-way player get serious minutes, and the squad has arguably the most NBA-level players on their roster for the first time in years.

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