Everything seemed normal for Naz Reid in the first half on Wednesday night.
The longtime center had seven points and six rebounds in 13 minutes, and helped give the Charlotte Hornets a seven-point lead at halftime at Little Caesars Arena. Nothing, at least publicly, appeared out of the ordinary.
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But when the Hornets started the second half in their matchup against the Detroit Pistons, Reid was on the bench. And he remained there the rest of the way as the Pistons rallied to grab the 97-89 win.
Hornets coach Charles Lee confirmed that it wasn’t an injury issue, but rather that he decided to bench Reid in the back half of the contest.
“Unfortunately, Naz didn’t meet our standards in the first half, and at halftime we made the decision that he wouldn’t play in the second half,” Lee said plainly. “But I look forward to him meeting those standards come next game.”
The “standards” that Reid failed to meet are not known.
Reid was dealt to the Hornets in June as part of the trade that sent Lamelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Reid got his NBA start with the Timberwolves after going undrafted out of LSU in 2019, and he quickly turned himself into a fan favorite there while becoming a key piece of their frontcourt. He even earned Sixth Man of the Year honors during the 2023-24 campaign, and averaged 13.6 points and 6.2 rebounds last season.
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Reid got off to a great start this fall with the Hornets, too. He entered Wednesday night averaging 19.5 points and 9.5 rebounds over their first four games while leading the team to a 3-1 start.
Reid, 27, is currently in the second year of a five-year, $125 million deal. He’s set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2030. Lee is in his third season as the Hornets head coach, which marks his first head coaching job in the league.
Cade Cunningham dropped 30 points to lead the Pistons back to their eight-point win on Wednesday night. Brandon Miller led the Hornets with 31 points and 12 rebounds, though they committed 25 total turnovers. Detroit opened the third quarter on a 16-5 run to take control, and it held on the rest of the way. The Pistons are now 4-1 on the season.
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It’s not clear what is happening behind the scenes with Reid and Lee in Charlotte this fall. But clearly, their new relationship is not off to the best start. We’ll see what happens when they take the court next against the Washington Wizards on Friday.
