The Charlotte Hornets have a long list of star players that have worn the purple and teal over the years. Who among them are good enough to make each decade’s best starting five?
30 years might seem like a long time, and it is, but in terms of NBA relevance, it’s rather short, especially compared to the more prestigious teams. Despite being in the NBA for just three decades, however, the Charlotte Hornets have amassed a list of star players that could certainly hold their own during their time.
So, let’s take a look at some of those players and construct a list of the finest from each decade in order to build the best starting lineup from each ten-year span in Charlotte history. It doesn’t matter how long a player was a part of the organization. If they were on the team in that decade and they made enough of an impact, they’ll be included.
I will also add that that if they only played for the New Orleans Hornets, they will not count, as this is for exclusively for teams that played in Charlotte.
Through three decades, the Charlotte Hornets have put together some talented squads.
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The All-90s starting five:
Point Guard – Muggsy Bogues
This one was a hard one because Muggsy wasn’t exactly a scorer, but he did play nearly the entire decade with the Hornets and is still the team’s all-time leader in assists. Not to mention that Muggsy has become synonymous with the culture of the team and is still somewhat of a brand ambassador to this day.
It was between either him or David Wesley, who was a better scorer, but played for a far shorter time in Charlotte and didn’t have the cultural impact that Muggsy had.
Shooting Guard – Eddie Jones
Eddie would only play just over 100 games for the Hornets (partly due to being traded from the Los Angeles Lakers during the shortened 50-game season of 1999), but he helped lead them to a playoff berth while leading the league in steals the following season. He was also an All-Star that year.
Kendal Gill was the other option as he was part of the group of Hornets that originally put them on the map. He averaged 16 points in four years in the Queen City.
You could also include Dell Curry, who was the team’s all-time leading scorer at one time, but as he was usually the sixth-man on those teams (winning the SMOY award in 1994) and his stats weren’t as impressive, he would not crack the lineup.
Small Forward – Glen Rice
This is an obvious no-brainer as Glen Rice is one of the franchise’s only All-Stars and the only one to win All-Star Game MVP. In fact, he was an All-Star every year he was in Charlotte and averaged almost 24 points a game while wearing a Hornets’ uniform.
Power Forward – Larry Johnson
Who else would we put here? The team’s first All-Star and the No. 1 overall pick of the 1991 NBA Draft, L.J. would also take home Rookie of the Year honors. Johnson played five years in Charlotte, averaging 19 and 9 while being half of one of the greatest duos in team history.
Center – Alonzo Mourning
The other half of that aforementioned duo, Alonzo Mourning was drafted the year after Johnson and together brought the Hornets to the forefront of the Eastern Conference, definitively putting to rest the Boston Celtics’ reign over the East in the first round of the 1993 playoffs. Mourning was also an All-Star in Charlotte and together, they proved to be one of the best frontcourts in the entire league during the mid-90s.
Time to move on to the 2000s.