2026-27 Season Preview: Charlotte Hornets

Kon Knueppel (right) and Brandon Miller look to lead the new-look Hornets as they build off last season’s Play-In appearance.

Offseason Recap

•

Last Season

: 44-38 (9th in East, lost in SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament)

• Key Additions

:

Grayson Allen, Christian Anderson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neale, Naz Reid, Dennis Schröder, Hannes Steinbach

Every Hornets move this offseason

Season Outlook

The Hornets traded two of their best players from last season (LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges) and decided to build around Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel. Miller averaged 20.2 points and Knueppel, who is already a top-notch 3-point shooter, averaged 18.5 points as a rookie last season. Their 44 victories represented the Hornets’ best season since 2015-16. The front office, led by executive vice president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson, made moves that set the Hornets up for the future with a mix of youth and veterans, cap space flexibility and draft assets.

Coach Charles Lee has done a great job in his two seasons with Charlotte, and he has a promising roster with which to work: Miller, Knueppel, Naz Reid, Coby White, Dennis Schröder, Grayson Allen, Hannes Steinbach, Christian Anderson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Royce O’Neale, Sion James, Grant Williams, Moussa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner.

The Hornets will be competitive, but they need to make up for the scoring Bridges provided and the playmaking Ball delivered. Plus, the division is tougher with Giannis Antetokounmpo joining the Miami Heat. The Atlanta Hawks and the Orlando Magic made the playoffs last season, and the Washington Wizards should be better.

The Hornets will be fun, and they have a promising future.

Breakout Candidate: Brandon Miller

In his third NBA season in 2025-26, Miller averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals and shot 43.5% from the field and 38.3% on 3s. The 6-foot-7 forward can improve on those stats and become a 20-5-5 player who shoots better than 45% from the field and 40% on 3s.

He is in a position to make the jump to All-Star for the first time in his career, and he will have the opportunity to showcase his offensive skills, especially now that Ball and Bridges are with different teams. Last season, Miller played with an injured left shoulder and had surgery in May to provide stability. He could miss games early in the season, and when he is available, the Hornets will rely on him to carry a significant offensive load.

1 Number To Know

12.6

– The Hornets scored 12.6 more points per 100 possessions with Ball on the floor (123.2) than they did with him off the floor (110.6) last season. That was the third-biggest on-off differential on offense among 263 players who played at least 1,000 minutes for a single team, trailing only those of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray.

The Hornets had the league’s most-improved offense, in part because Ball played in 25 more games than he did the previous season. Now they’ll have to restructure their offense without the guy who led them in time of possession.

They won’t miss Ball’s shot selection. He was among 183 players with at least 500 field goal attempts last season and Ball ranked 174th in shot quality, lowest on the Hornets by a healthy margin. But they will miss his shot creation. He was among 139 players whose teammates attempted at least 500 shots off their passes — Ball’s passes produced the 13th highest shot quality, tops among Hornets by a healthy margin.

— John Schuhmann

5 Must-See Matchups

Oct. 24: Heat vs. Hornets

— In the first week of the season, the Hornets play three divisional opponents, including the new-look Heat with Antetokounmpo.

Dec. 29: Magic vs. Hornets

— It’s another stretch of divisional games – four consecutive, concluding with this against Orlando. The Hornets will have a good idea of where they stand heading into the new year.

Feb. 15: Timberwolves vs. Hornets

— It’s the LaMelo Ball return game. He was drafted No. 3 by the Hornets in 2020 and spent six seasons with Charlotte, where he was Rookie of the Year and an All-Star selection.

March. 26: Knicks vs. Hornets

— The Hornets play the defending champions twice in the final three weeks of the regular season, including this one in Charlotte.

April 11: Hornets vs. 76ers

— It’s the final day of the regular season, and playoff seeding could be at stake for both teams.

>

Complete Regular Season Schedule

Preseason Storylines

With the backcourt (White, Knueppel, Schröder, Allen) and wings (Miller, James, O’Neale, Finney-Smith) just about solidified, the frontcourt/big men positions have less certainty.

The Hornets acquired Reid (13.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg in 2025-26) from Minnesota in the Ball trade, and he will figure prominently offensively and defensively. The 2023-24

Sixth Man of the Year

is set up to have a career year.

Diabate (strong rebounder, especially on offense) played 26 minutes per game last season, but the Hornets drafted mobile 6-foot-11 Steinbach with the No. 14 pick in the

2026 NBA Draft

, and he looked good in Summer League as a scorer and rebounder. Charlotte also has Kalkbrenner (more of a traditional big who rebounds and blocks shots), Williams (veteran savvy) and O’Neale, who can play power forward, too. Tidjane Salaun, the No. 6 pick in the

2024 Draft

, could be in the mix. Lee has options with varying skillsets to consider.

Complete Preseason Schedule

* * *

Jeff Zillgitt has covered the NBA since 2008. You can email him at jzillgitt@nba.com, find

his archive here

and

follow him on X

.