Charlotte Hornets 2022-2023: The Ceiling and the Floor
By Nick Grasso
The Charlotte Hornets had a relatively quiet offseason, with Miles Bridges’ legal troubles being the unfortunate headliner for this young squad. More recently, Charlotte signed explosive point guard Dennis Smith Jr. and the third Ball brother, LiAngelo Ball, to nonguaranteed deals.
The up and down offseason has the Hornets shooting for success in this upcoming campaign, but what’s a realistic ceiling and floor for a team led by LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier?
What is the ceiling for the 2022-23 Charlotte Hornets?
The Ceiling: The combination of youth and experience on this team is remarkable, as guys like James Bouknight and Mark Williams hold promise for the future, while contributors Gordon Hayward and Mason Plumlee know their way around the league and the basketball court.
Finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference last year after losing to the Pacers in the play-in game was a disappointing end to a promising season, but there is hope. In 2021-2022, LaMelo Ball was 17th in the league in assists per game, ninth in steals per game, shot 43% from the field, and is still only 21 years old.
Ball is set to take the next step, and his facilitation abilities are already elite.
Head coach Steve Clifford is ready to embrace the challenge of coaching the Hornets into contention in his second stint with the team, and the pieces are there to do just that.
NBA fans know that in modern day basketball, it takes at least one if not more legitimate superstars to bring home the trophy. As currently constructed, the Hornets are undoubtedly a piece or two away from that goal, but it’s not all doom and gloom.
Having not won a playoff series since 2002, the Hornets’ primary goal should be to capture that elusive playoff series win. Drawing the right opponent in the first round could see this goal come to fruition this season, as Charlotte is capable of knocking off the likes of Chicago, Cleveland, and New York.
All that to say, the Charlotte Hornets’ ceiling for the 2022-2023 campaign is a playoff series win and a conference semi-finals appearance.
What is the floor for the 2022-23 Charlotte Hornets?
The Floor: Let’s be realistic for a minute. winning the championship is not a feasible goal for this squad this season. If the train falls off the track, Steven Clifford could watch his team fail to make the playoffs for the seventh straight season.
Let’s imagine that LaMelo doesn’t improve enough, Hayward struggles with injuries, Bouknight and Williams fail to make an impact, and that the preseason opener against Boston will become the norm. Things would not look good.
That string of misfortune is unlikely to come to total fruition, but this group of players is young, and many of them haven’t tasted the postseason in their careers.
Clifford is a good coach, but he’s no Steve Kerr, and a slow start that creates an environment of mediocrity could cause this team to plummet in the standings. With the new play-in format, it would be hard to imagine a reality where the Hornets aren’t a top-10 team in the East, but another possible play-in loss isn’t out of the question.
The floor for the 2022-2023 Charlotte Hornets is a loss in the play-in tournament and a seventh straight year without a playoff berth.
With one of the most promising young rosters in all of basketball, a coach hungry for victory, and Michael Jordan as the man behind the curtain, the Hornets are likely on an upward trajectory. The question is how long it will take for this team to reach its potential.