Swarm and Sting
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Charlotte Hornets: The Pick That Never Was

By Elijah Edwards

Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) shoots the ball over Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the third quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) shoots the ball over Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the third quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) shoots the ball over Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the third quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) shoots the ball over Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the third quarter at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /

The sports world is full of front office snafus. Every team in every sport has one or two mistakes that have either thrown a monkey wrench in their winning ways or, that further kept them in the basement of their respective league. The Charlotte Hornets have had a few as well, but one, above all others, still stings to this day.

It was the summer of 1996. The NBA was fresh off its first season with its two newest teams, the Toronto Raptors, and the Vancouver Grizzlies. Michael Jordan and the Bulls had just won their fourth NBA championship, capping off a then record 72-10 season.

NBC still had the rights to show NBA games, so you got to hear that iconic NBA on NBC theme before every big game. The NBA was seemingly at an all-time high going into one of the deepest drafts in league history. For fans of professional basketball, it was truly a time to be alive.

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The same could kind of be said for the Charlotte Hornets at the time. Even though they had a disappointing season, going 41-41 and missed the playoffs by one game, they still led the league in attendance for the seventh straight year. The Hornets hoped to find pieces in the draft that would get them back to the playoffs after going 50-32 the year before.

They certainly had plenty of talent from which to choose as the 1996 draft class was loaded. Names like Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Ray Allen, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and Steve Nash were among the top names. Oh, and a guy named Kobe Byrant was there too.

The NBA was a bit of a quandary in regards to players coming out of high school. It was still allowed, of course, but the only player to actually have any recent success was Keven Garnett the previous year. Prior to that, the last player was Darryl Dawkins, back in 1975. Teams weren’t really sure whether these high school kids were ready for the NBA. Kobe was no different.

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