“All the scouting was done via video and then the last three or four weeks, we’ve been bringing in probably close to 80 players into Charlotte for individual workouts,” said Kupchak during Monday morning’s pre-draft media availability. “You got to be careful that bringing them in doesn’t overly sway the way you look at a player and disregard what you watched [on video]. You can get a great feel for their athleticism, skill level. It’s helped quite a bit.”
...
“We’re not deep enough to be able to sustain an injury or two,” he said. “We’ve just got to add talent to this team.
There is a player or two that are four-year guys that would be considered at 11, but most of the time at 11, you’re going to get someone very young. If it is a young player, [we’d like him] to be talented with great character that would fit in to what we’re trying to build here in Charlotte.”...
“We are going to look to take the best available talent,” added Kupchak.
“If there are two players [at different positions] that are definitely equal in talent and skill level, then maybe we lean to a big because like I mentioned, that’s an area that there’s more uncertainty.
We’re a little short in the backcourt and you could always use another wing. So, we would probably still continue to lean towards the best talent available, but at some point, if it’s real close, there will be some discussions based on need.”
...
“I think naturally the bar has been [raised],” Kupchak stated.
“I think expectations are probably more this year coming up than they were last year. People expect more. I think our coaches and players expect more. We’ve got to keep it going. We’ve got a lot of flexibility with our cap and we’ve got three picks. Moving forward and continuing to improve, and hopefully, [we] contend for a playoff spot this year. Based on how we played last year, I would hope that we continue to improve and that we’re in the hunt.”