Three Reasons Why the Charlotte Hornets Have a Bright Future

I understand why no one talks much about the Charlotte Hornets“The Hornets have potential in 2024-25, but why not in the years to come? There are several reasons why the Hornets are poised to become a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference in the near future, but I’ve detailed the top three.

We can sit here and talk about health all day, but we’re not going to. Yes, it’s a major factor in whether or not this team takes that next step, but the health issue is implicit when talking about this group. LaMelo Ball is a unique talent and one that every NBA team would love to have. A 6-foot-1 shooting guard who can handle, shoot, and is unselfish to the highest degree. Add in a high-end scorer like Brandon Miller, who seems like a special player in his own right, and suddenly you have something cooking. Miles Bridges is often the forgotten piece in all of this, but he’s still relatively young, too. He’s going to average about 20 points and seven rebounds a night, which is really solid production for a small power forward. And the last piece, Mark Williams, has shown flashes of what he could be as a future two-way star in the league. We won’t even get into the conversation about Tidjane Salaün because it’s so early in his career and there are a lot of unknowns about him, but if he scores, watch out.

I really liked Steve Clifford. He’s a great guy, he knows his basketball, and he was well respected around the league. That said, everyone knew that his return to Charlotte was just a band-aid or a bridge to the long-term solution at head coaching. This time around, the Hornets went with a young, defensive-minded coach in Charles Lee, who already has two championships under his belt. From the day he was introduced as the next head coach, it was obvious that he had the trust and respect of the players. In fact, this predates the first press conference. A few members of the team went to the final game of the NBA Finals to cheer on and possibly congratulate their future leader. I don’t usually give rookie head coaches rave reviews, but this one was a successful hire.

That’s not to say Michael Jordan didn’t want to win, but Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin are fully committed to making this franchise a premier NBA franchise. It’s a goal they’ve stated since the day they first spoke to the media in Charlotte, and they’ve wasted no time in putting their money where their mouth is. The Spectrum Center is undergoing a massive two-year renovation, and a state-of-the-art practice facility is next on their to-do list. They’re very passionate about turning this organization around and are willing to do whatever it takes without stepping on the toes of Jeff Peterson, Charles Lee, and other key members of the Hornets’ management team.

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