The top starting five from each decade of Charlotte Hornets basketball
This group will include one obvious name, but deciding the rest wasn’t so easy.
This one isn’t as difficult, but due to some cross over between decades and an obvious lack of talent at those positions, it may not be the least exciting on this list.
The All-10s starting five:
Point Guard – Kemba Walker
The biggest no-brainer on the list, Kemba is the greatest to ever play in Charlotte, and it still kind of stings seeing him play in another city. I don’t think I need to explain this one too much. In fact, there is no one else even close. If we’re deciding on a backup, though. you could do worse than D.J. Augustin.
Shooting Guard – Gerald Henderson
Henderson played six seasons in Charlotte and while none of them were stellar, he was a treat to watch from time to time and was underrated in a lot of ways.
I really wanted to put Stephen Jackson here again and could have since he played for the Bobcats in 2011, but he played just 67 games and while he averaged 18 points in those 67 games, I’m taking longevity here.
Jeremy Lamb was also considered.
Small Forward – Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Yes. It’s boring, I know. I could have picked Gerald Wallace since he also technically played in the 2011 season, but he played just 48 games. You could argue those 48 games were better than the entirety of MKG’s eight years in Charlotte, but either way, you would like different results.
Power Forward – Marvin Williams
I could cheat here too by going out of listed positions, but Marvin is officially listed at power forward and was the entire time he was in Charlotte. He wasn’t terrible, of course, as his defense and three-point shooting were certainly helpful, as was his locker room presence.
Center – Al Jefferson
You know I had to put Big Al here. He was the star of the team during Kemba’s formative years until he took over the reins, but while they were together, they were certainly fun to watch. Jefferson was 2013-2014 Third Team All-NBA and how he didn’t make the All-Star team while putting up 22 and 11 a night is beyond me.
If you really wanted to, you could slide in either Jefferson or Dwight Howard into the two frontcourt spots and if we’re building a team to actually play games, I definitely would. In any case, this team mostly played together, and considering their lack of playoff success, maybe doesn’t make them the strongest of these three teams.
So, what do the 20s have in store? Will anyone on the current roster make that squad? Devonte’ Graham sure made a case for being a reliable asset and the other younger guys like P.J. Washington and Miles Bridges look to be promising as well. I suppose we’ll find out in ten years’ time.