As we near the start of the NBA play-in tournament and subsequent playoffs, the Charlotte Hornets are looking to make a strong push to make the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. When I look at this team, I think of the 1980s Lakers Dynasty with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, and Byron Scott.
This Hornets roster contains so much young talent; we may see the rise of a future NBA dynasty. I see a lot of similarities between the 1980s Lakers and the current-day Hornets. One prime example of this is the drafting of LaMelo Ball. Similar to the Lakers drafting Magic, both guards have the flashiness and swagger that their respective cities needed to put their name on the map.
Another similarity is the play style of both teams. The Hornets run a Princeton offense, which is almost identical to the Lakers “Showtime” variant of offense. Both feature run-and-gun offenses that push the pace and give the defense less time to set up. A large dose of improvising on the offensive side of the ball helps keep the defense guessing at every turn. The Lakers ran this offense to perfection and secured title after title.
A final similarity I see is the surrounding of LaMelo with young talent such as Miles Bridges, Terry Rozier, and P.J. Washington, which is similar to what the Lakers did when they surrounded Johnson with Worthy, Scott, and Michael Cooper. Those three guys helped big time in taking the shooting pressure off of Johnson, who became one of the most elite passers in league history.
The only difference between the two teams at this point is that one had a dominant big man. Kareem helped a big amount when it came to scoring in the Lakers’ run-and-gun system. As he averaged over 20 points per game for his career with Lakers, he was an obvious cornerstone to build around. As of now, the Swarm have no such big man.
All in all, this roster has the capability to be something special. With a lot of talent and a bright future, which many teams wouldn’t be able to stop, Charlotte could become the next NBA dynasty if they can secure a dominant big man in the upcoming offseason.