Apr 8, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Tidjane Salaun (31) warms up before the game against the Memphis Grizzlies at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

Tidjane Salaun must look better in Summer League, analyst claims

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Jul 11, 2025 9:53 AM ET

The Charlotte Hornets took a big swing in the 2024 draft by taking Tidjane Salaun, someone who is still not yet 20 years old. Pressed into much more NBA action than expected thanks to injuries, Salaun was downright awful at the NBA level in 2024-25.

Heading into 2025-26, there is still only a little bit of pressure to succeed since he's still so young. But one Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley thinks it will be a lot harder to have any hope with the young player if he doesn't at least look a little better in Summer League.

"Salaun, last year's No. 6 overall pick, was billed as a toolsy prospect who was rough around the edges. That's basically how he appeared during his first NBA go-round," Buckley said. For what it's worth, Salaun did decently well in Summer League and training camp last year (9.0 points on 42.3% from the field in 19 minutes a night) before struggling, so performance in the hottest months of the year might not matter.

"Everything felt too fast for him. Nothing about his stat line offered encouragement," Buckley added. "Even bumping his averages to their per-36-minutes rates gave him just 10.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists. His 90.5 points per 100 shot attempts was a 4th percentile figure, per Cleaning the Glass."

Buckley said that Salaun's performance was brutal, but it wasn't unexpected. "He's still a teenager who is growing into his body and catching up to the competition in terms of his on-court feel. Hope shouldn't be lost, although Hornets fans could have a hard time holding onto it if he doesn't appear noticeably better," the analyst concluded.

Salaun is still very much a project. But if he looks again like a really bad NBA player in Summer League against diluted competition, then it is going to get much harder to see a future for him with the Hornets or in this league at all.