Just how large of a window remains for Mitch Kupchak as Charlotte Hornets GM?

It’s been just over two years since the Charlotte Hornets hired Mitch Kupchak as their newest General Manager. In that time, he’s made some noteworthy changes to the team, but it’s been a mixed bag.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” as the old adage states and that is certainly true of sports. Rarely are contending teams constructed overnight and most take years to develop. Charlotte Hornets fans know this all too well as they’ve been waiting for almost two decades for a team that can perenially challenge for playoff success.

It sounds a bit like hyperbole, but it’s true. The last time the Hornets not only made the playoffs in consecutive years but also made it past the first round, was 2002. To that in perspective, the team’s current owner, Michael Jordan, was still playing, though, that was at that very tail-end of his career.

There are franchises that have had it much worse than Charlotte has but in terms of the NBA, few teams and fanbases have had to suffer what the Hornets have. I hate to dig up old wounds, but sometimes, it bears repeating.

If there’s any team that could use a capable GM, it’s the Charlotte Hornets.

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Firstly, the team was moved in a fashion that really angered the city of Charlotte at the time. They then had to wait for a new team to be awarded to them, only to see that team flounder for most of its existence, including finishing a season with the worst winning percentage in NBA history, albeit in a shortened season.

Then, after said season, the team would somehow miss out on the number one pick in the draft. This is all in addition to terrible front office decisions and draft night moves over the years that, for the most part, have led to this team’s mediocrity.

So, Michael Jordan decided to try and fix all of this by hiring long-time Los Angeles Lakers GM, Mitch Kupchak, to the same role, back in April of 2018. Since then, the 66-year old has managed the team fairly well.

Draft-wise, he’s done a very solid job, picking guys like P.J. Washington this past draft and trading for players like Miles Bridges and Devonte’ Graham on draft night two years ago. Just between those three players, the team has a nice young foundation on which to build.

It hasn’t all been sunshine and rainbows, however, as Kupchak wasn’t able to sign and retain All-Star guard, Kemba Walker, in a move that put a foul taste in the mouths of Charlotte Hornets fans everywhere. Thankfully, that would be just about the worst thing to happen so far under Kupchak’s management.

So, is his job safe? I think so, at least for now. With Michael Jordan and Mitch Kupchak, you have two guys who know the game of basketball and the business surrounding it. You could argue that M.J. could stand to learn more about the business and ownership side, but you would also like to believe that no owner has a stronger drive to field a winning team. I mean, you would really, really like to believe that.

In any case, Mitch still has his work to do in order to build a winning club. As of now, he seems to be stuck with one of the worst contracts in Charlotte Hornets‘ history for quite some time, but in a few months, he could shed other bad contracts by simply letting those players walk.

That by itself will win you a few brownie points with fans, but where he can really improve is via the NBA Draft, on top of using some of the cash they’ll be freeing up in order to find the absolute correct piece in free agency for this team going forward.

That last point is something that is imperative as the GM of this squad, but nailing it in the draft has to be of the utmost importance. It has time and again been the club’s biggest downfall, going back as far as the team’s inception. Yes, there have been a few key pieces taken in the draft over the years, but overall, it has been this organization’s kryptonite.

Depending on where they pick, Kupchak has a good chance to further turn that around, but it will be extremely crucial he does so in order to keep the fans’ faith in him and the team. Here’s hoping he can do that because the fans need it and I’d wager he does as well.

It’s been four years since the Hornets last saw the postseason and even if the NBA decides to resume the current season, Charlotte would most likely be passed over, even in an expanded playoff scenario.

At this point, however, simply making the playoffs is merely a step in the right direction.  It’s a positive step, sure, but 18 years without a first-round series win is a long time and that has to be the measuring stick with which fans will gauge the team’s success.

How long that will take is up ultimately up to Jordan, but if Kupchak can’t bring to the Queen City something even remotely close to the winning ways of the Lakers in the early 2000s, five or six years might be his upper ceiling.

However, if Mitch can not only get this team into the playoffs in consecutive years but actually get past the first round, then he’s more than proved his worth. Doing so would begin to heal years and years of anguish for Charlotte Hornets faithful, but it can also bring in new fans, which may just be what the team needs most.