Why the Charlotte Hornets’ success could be limited in 2023-24
The success the Charlotte Hornets will have in the upcoming season could very well be of the limited variety. This is a team coming off a disappointing 27-55 season marred with injuries and poor performance. While the expectations are that they will improve upon a season that saw anything and everything go wrong, their ceiling for success is projected to be limited.
In Bleacher Report’s Why Your Favorite Team Won’t Win the 2024 NBA Title, Dan Favale has identified the Hornets as a team that could be fun to watch but notes why they could end up falling short when all is said and done. This is a team that obviously is not a title contender, so this is more of an exercise to point out positives and negatives rather than shoot down championship hopes.
"“There will be nights on which this team is a riveting-as-hell watch. LaMelo-driven offenses are hard-wired to run, and Clifford isn’t trying to slow him down. But there’s only so much substance to be achieved with 48 to 49 games of Gordon Hayward; not enough minutes for JT Thor; the freshly and awkwardly re-signed P.J. Washington; a less-outsized role for Terry Rozier; limited interior finishing; a presumably heavy reliance on two kids (Miller and Williams); and a Mitch Kupchak farewell tour.”"
As Favale did with every team on the list, an In a nutshell section was included prior to the lengthy breakdown, and the Hornets’ selection may even be a bit lofty for the way the roster is currently constructed. “The material used to make in-season tournament banners lasts just as long.” is what has been applied to Charlotte by Favale. It is not quite known how serious actual contending teams will approach the In-Season Tournament, which makes it a bit of an unknown. There is a scenario that could lead to lesser teams coming out on top while teams with higher aspirations focus on the real NBA Postseason.
The upcoming season is more of a fact-finding mission for the organization instead of trying to contend for anything of note. There are just too many unknowns about this roster at this time. Can LaMelo Ball stay healthy? Will Brandon Miller be able to live up to his lofty expectations? Does Charlotte have enough outside shooting to bounce back from being one of the worst three-point shooting teams last season? Even if the answers to all three of these questions are yes, the fact of the matter is this is a team that lacks enough talent to genuinely compete for anything of note.
