What if the Charlotte Hornets never traded Kobe Bryant?

Have you ever stopped and wondered what would’ve happened if the Charlotte Hornets never traded away Kobe Bryant?

In the summer of 1996, the Charlotte Hornets picked a prospect at the 13th spot in the NBA Draft. Little did they know, that this player would go on to become one of the best NBA players of all-time.

During this draft, the Hornets would select Kobe Bryant, a prospect who was coming straight out of high school. The Hornets would go on to trade Bryant to the Los Angeles Lakers for Vlade Divac.

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At this time, the Lakers were hell-bent on getting Bryant in this draft. Luckily, the Hornets were vulnerable enough to trade for Divac after having no clear option at the center position.

Of course, this trade may have never happened, if Divac would’ve retired that off-season. Charlotte Observer reporter, Rick Bonnell, said that he caught up with Bryant during a game a Madison Square Garden. He would get an interesting reply from Bryant.

When Bryant was asked what he would do if Divac retired, he replied with a smirk and said: he’d be a Hornet, that anything else was just a bluff. The fact of Bryant being a Hornet is just fascinating to think about.

I wish it were that simple, but everyone knows that Bryant had his own thoughts about Charlotte during the draft. He simply refused to play with any other team except for the Lakers.

Even though he did not want to play for Charlotte, the Hornets could’ve not traded him if they wanted to. This raises the question on what if the Hornets would’ve never traded him?

Well, if the Hornets would’ve kept Bryant, their main concern would have been to find a way for him to sign his rookie contract. If Bryant was put into that situation, I think he would’ve signed his contract with Charlotte.

At that time, Charlotte was coming off a 41-41 season with Coach Allan Bristow, and they still had a solid roster. While the roster was intact, the Hornets would still hire a new head coach for the 1996-1997 season; that coach was Dave Cowens.

If the Hornets would’ve signed Bryant, he would’ve still had players like Muggsy Bogues, Dell Curry, and Glen Rice to play with. The Hornets would go on to finish the 96-97 season with a new franchise record of 54 wins and 28 losses.

This makes one wonder on how Bryant would’ve also fit into this team? While Curry was already the backup two-guard, the Hornets maybe could’ve started Bryant over the veteran guard, Ricky Pierce. The only other option would’ve been to have Bryant come off the bench behind Rice.

It still would’ve been nice to have Bryant be a part of that historic season with the Hornets. I personally would’ve liked to see him prosper in Charlotte and play with a great shooter like Dell Curry.

I think Bryant would’ve become a deadlier player from beyond the arc earlier in his career, while also building unto his legendary mid-range game. Curry would’ve been the perfect shooting coach for Bryant when he was a rookie.

Of course, keeping Bryant would’ve changed the future of the franchise. It could’ve led to the team not drafting certain players, and possibly never even relocating to New Orleans.

The Hornets ultimately lost the 1996 draft since they traded away Bryant. It’s hard to think that Charlotte had a future NBA legend within their grasp and gave him away. Luckily, the Hornets have someone as their GM who was very familiar with Bryant.