Ryan Kalkbrenner's Rookie-Year Evolution Has the Charlotte Hornets' Defense Humming

Much like Liam Neeson's character in the film 'Taken,' Ryan Kalkbrenner has a particular set of skills that makes him a nightmare for opposing offenses.

The majority of the Charlotte Hornets' defensive coverages with Kalkbrenner in the lineup have involved him playing drop coverage, essentially walling off the rim to stave off efficient attempts at the basket and force opponents into some more high-variance jumpers from above the free throw line.

For the most part, Kalkbrenner has been solid in drop. Opponents attempt 3% fewer of their shots at the rim when the four-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year mans the center position, converting on nearly 3% fewer of those attempts.

Of even more importance is that opposing teams convert on nearly 6% fewer of their corner three point attempts when Kalkbrenner is on the floor. Because he is able to shut off the paint with his dominant combination of size, IQ, and well-coached positioning, his teammates are able to stay home on perimeter shooters, cutting off the most-efficient shot in basketball from the corners.

Kalkbrenner has been a solid rotational big this season and has totally outplayed his 34th overall draft slot through the first few months of his NBA career. He went through a bit of a lull in January after returning from injury, but that was short-lived.

In recent weeks, there has been a noticeable increase in Kalkbrenner's two-way impact, and Charles Lee spent a few minutes before Tuesday night's dominant win over the Kings talking about Kalkbrenner's improved play over the course of the season both on offense and defense.

Charles Lee speaks about Ryan Kalkbrenner's recent play

Charlotte Hornets center Ryan Kalkbrenner (11) reacts to a play during second half — Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images

"I've seen his growth over the last couple of weeks especially with his level of physicality. He's brought it defensively and offensively. We've seen him effect shots at the rim, the way he's rebounding offensively, catching passes around the basket he has such great hands, and his ability to finish at a high rate has been good."

"I love his open-mindedness. Even last game (Saturday's win against Memphis), sometimes we had him in drop, sometimes he's actually switching a little bit, he's probably one of our best defensive communicators when it comes to coverages."

Lee ended his solilquy about Kalkbrenner with a comment that looks prescient in hindsight.

"The last part that he can continue to grow at, and where LaMelo wants me to push him, and Mason (Plumlee) said the same thing -- I have to let him shoot threes at some point."

Although his attempt at a three-pointer missed the mark, Kalkbrenner did shoot a corner three in the dying minutes of the win over Sacramento on a play that looked drawn up to get him a look from deep.

He may not develop into the Brook Lopez clone that draft evaluators imagined him to be, but if Kalkbrenner can consistently punish defenses by sinking perimeter jumpers with some frequency, his overall impact will increase tenfold.

The 2025 rookie class has been stellar from top to bottom, and Kalkbrenner's closing kick may just earn him a spot on one of the two All-Rookie teams come award season.

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