Thanksgiving Day is the time to be thankful. Charlotte Hornets fans can be thankful for a stable future that has finally been put into place.
After years of mediocrity, the Charlotte Hornets are on the right path as they look to rebuild this franchise from the ground up. With today being Thanksgiving, it’s a perfect time to look ahead and break down why fans should be thankful that the team is finally on the right track.
During the off-season, the Hornets lost their two leading scorers from a season ago in Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb. Since then, it’s been all about youth and development in the Queen City. While they won’t be a great time right away, they have a foundation and can go nowhere but up from here.
Since Mitch Kupchak took over as General Manager in April of 2018, he’s done an excellent job of bringing in and developing young players. He’s drafted six players, Miles Bridges and Devonte’ Graham in 2018, and PJ Washington, Cody Martin and Jalen McDaniels in 2019.
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He also drafted Arnoldas Kulboka in 2018, but he’s been playing overseas as a draft-and-stash. They do have high hopes for him, so I would expect to see him in a Charlotte uniform at some point in the future.
Bridges, Washington and Graham look like legit building blocks. They’ve shown a ton of improvement already and are only going to keep getting better. Martin, McDaniels and Kulboka could end up finding success as role players with the right approach.
Kupchak has hit on nearly every pick thus far for the Hornets, so fans should be confident in his approach. Charlotte’s likely going to have another lottery pick this season, and if it ends up being a top-five selection, Kupchak could have the chance to add a franchise talent to the equation.
Aside from the major emphasis on development, the Hornets are also doing a good job in building an identity. That’s important for every team on the rise. James Borrego is holding his players accountable, making defense and ball movement a requirement for playing time.
Both Borrego and Kupchak are on the same page. It’s been a stable relationship thus far and one that I see continuing throughout this rebuild. It’s important for the players to work under a familiar coaching staff, rather than a constantly changing coaching staff.
It’s really a shame that this franchise couldn’t build a legit contender around Kemba Walker during his time here. They had some good moments, but overall, poor roster construction along with poor draft execution put this time in a bad place.
Kupchak has done a very good job so far putting the pieces back together for the Charlotte Hornets. If he can continue to draft well and develop talent, this team could be back in the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference in a few years.
The Hornets are currently 7-12, good for the tenth seed in the Eastern Conference. While they may have surprised many early on, the expectation is that they will again finish the season outside of the playoffs.
Still, it’s good to see them competing and not simply tanking the season away. It will be exciting to watch this young core grow game after game and season after season.
With just three playoff appearances in the past 15 years, the Charlotte Hornets aim to be back in on the big stage in a matter of years. Rebuilding is a tough thing for a fan base to endure, but in the long run, this will all be worth it, if everything goes to plan.