The Charlotte Hornets have released their preseason schedule. After a quiet summer, the front office clearly believes that a healthy roster with some fresh young faces added via the draft should be enough to see them contend for a postseason spot. Last year, the Hornets dealt with a season-ending injury to LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges’ suspension, and the now-expected intermittent availability of Gordon Hayward.
Dennis Smith Jr. and Svi Mykhailiuk are no longer with the franchise, and Kelly Oubre Jr’s future remains anything but certain. However, preseason will give Hornets fans a chance to see how the roster is shaping up heading into the new season, along with any new wrinkles in Steve Clifford’s playbook.
Charlotte will play four preseason games, competing against the Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Boston Celtics.
Counting down the days until October 10th! 🗓️🕺🏽
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) July 28, 2023
Get all the preseason info: https://t.co/qimeq07ukz pic.twitter.com/PNqyahBpcJ
The games will be sloppy. Players will quickly tire. And we’re probably going to see some rough shooting nights as teams around the league begin to get their legs back under them. Yet, after a summer of limited basketball, preseason will be the first reprieve for fans looking to get their NBA hoops fix.
With that being said, let’s take a closer look at each of the Hornet’s preseason competition so we know what to expect coming into each game.
Game 1: Hornets vs. Miami Heat
Location: Kaseya Center, Miami
Date: October 10
Key Heat players: Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro
New additions: N/A
Notable offseason moves: Re-signed Kevin Love, added Dru Smith and Jamaree Bouyea on two-way contracts.
Last season, the Maimi Heat became the surprise package of the NBA. Erik Spoelstra’s team struggled throughout the regular season and found themselves having to claw their way into the postseason via the play-in tournament. However, Miami was always built for the playoffs. Shock victories over the Milwaukee Bucks (first round) and Boston Celtics (Eastern Conference Finals) saw Miami charge to the NBA Finals, where they ultimately came up short against the Denver Nuggets.
Miami’s summer has been marred by their public pursuit of Damian Lillard and the star guard’s insistence on making the move to South Beach. As such, Miami is the same team they were to end last season. Make no mistake, though – that’s a very, very good team. The Hornets will get a good litmus test as to their improvements right from the jump, as they will be tasked with breaking down Miami’s plethora of zone defenses while also keeping Butler and Adebayo quiet on the interior.
There will be minutes up for grabs on the Hornets roster, so Charlotte will likely give their recent draft additions ample time to both acclimate and begin staking their claim for a rotation spot.