‘He is a project.’ What Charlotte Hornets fans think of NBA Draft pick Tidjane Salaun

Did y’all hear “Yooooo!” — as in excited?

“Nooooo!” — as in disappointed?

Or ... “Oh?” — as in confused?

If you were at the South End bar Hoppin’ just past 8:30 p.m. Wednesday — amid the gathering of Charlotte Hornets fans watching their favorite team take Tidjane Salaun from France with the sixth pick in the 2024 NBA Draft — you certainly heard one of those three reactions. Maybe you heard all three.

“I would put it at about 20-to-30 percent excited,” said Evan Kent, founder of Crown Club CLT, the official fan union of the Charlotte Hornets that hosted Wednesday’s party. “Probably split it with ‘Huh?’, and the rest was adamantly against.”

He then shrugged and chuckled: “But you look historically, especially last year with how upset people got at the draft pick, you hope it’s a tradition that carries on. Maybe we boo every draft pick from here on out, and they just turn out to be borderline Rookies of the Year every time you do it?”

It’s true that Wednesday night wasn’t nearly as dramatic as last year’s draft reaction. A year ago, the Hornets opted to pass on Scoot Henderson and instead took Brandon Miller — and Hornets fans went viral for the collective groan that reverberated across the league.

The good news? Those frustrated fans a year ago were largely proven wrong after Miller’s brilliant rookie season, and that of course could happen again in 2024.

The not-so-good news? This year’s pick might need some extra marketing to the fan base.

Salaun, one of three Frenchman taken in the first six picks, averaged 9 points, 4 rebounds and one assist in 33 games played in LNB Pro A league in France this year. At 18 years old, the 6-foot-9, 218-pound winger is the youngest player in the draft — a draft considered to be as wide-open as any in the past few decades — and analysts say he has the ability immediately to make meaningful impacts on the defensive end of the floor right away, something the Hornets desperately need.

Tie that in with all that’s exciting and new on East Trade Street — stadium renovations and engaged ownership and a new coaching staff — and there’s plenty of positives to extract from Wednesday night. Kent referenced all of this Wednesday.

Still, Kent acknowledged that Hornets fans are desperate to win now. A decade with only two winning seasons will do that to a fan base, after all — particularly one that withstood a near-Bobcat-level dwelling at 21-61 year in 2023-24.

”As the fan in me, I feel like we could’ve gotten him later,” Kent said. “I would’ve been happy if we traded back and gotten him at No. 9 and taken that gamble and taken an additional asset. And I know the draft isn’t necessarily super strong, and you could argue here or there about the merits of different players, but I think the biggest thing that I have is that it’s well-documented and well-known that he is a project. And while he might translate into a phenomenal player in two or three years, it makes you wonder how that fits with our timeline.”

That timeline includes LaMelo Ball, the highest paid player in Charlotte sports history. It includes second-year player Brandon Miller and third-year guy Mark Williams. It makes Kent wonder: If the team believes in this core group — as head coach Charles Lee says he does — is taking on such a young guy prudent?

That question is the source of whatever sound emanated from Hoppin’ on Wednesday night. The question was only heightened when Donovan Clingan and Dalton Knecht — two proven college stars previously linked to Hornets draft rumors — were taken after Salaun.

But the question doesn’t take away from the fact that Salaun is a Hornet now — and he’ll be supported like one, Kent said.

“Everybody, the moment he puts on a Charlotte Hornets hat, is like, ‘I hope he has the best season ever.’”

Here’s what else Hornets fans and online personalities are saying about the Hornets’ first-round selection.

Watch fans react to Hornets’ Tidjane Salaun selection