Hornets Enter 2025-26 Season With Fresh, Hopeful Faces

A new season for the Charlotte Hornets kicks off on Wednesday as the team faces the Brooklyn Nets in Uptown, with new faces sporting the teal jerseys amid hope that the Hornets can not only be competitive but break the league’s longest active streak without a playoff experience. 

Perhaps the organization’s first championship, winning the Las Vegas Summer League in July, will be the spark that spurs the team to greater heights. 

“You’ve got to believe you’re a winner before you can actually achieve it,” Hornets GM Jeff Peterson said during the team’s Media Day at Queens University last month. “When you figure out how not to accept losing — it’s a mindset, and I think it carries over.”

Winter ball is a whole other animal, however, so let’s take a look at what the Hornets will need to do to climb out of their all-too-familiar hole. 

Can a rookie be a team leader? 

One of the new faces in town is Kon Knueppel, whom the Hornets selected with the fourth pick in the draft. The selection initially seemed like a surprising choice, with names like Ace Bailey and Tre Johnson still on the board, but Knueppel’s all-around game, grit and determination led scouts to look beyond his lack of athleticism — which might have been a myth to begin with. 

I asked if that perceived lack of athleticism helped make him a better basketball player. 

“I can’t really rely on it,” Knueppel replied. “I have to be more skilled. I have to think [through] the game a little bit better. I think that helps me a lot on the mental side of the game.” 

Peterson and head coach Charles Lee are both big boosters for their new guard/forward out of Duke, as Peterson believes he has that mindset he mentioned earlier — a refusal to accept losing. 

“He’s a guy that just fits everything that we’re about,” Peterson said of Knueppel. “On the floor, there’s no secret what he provides. He’s just a winner. He figures out how to make impact plays and help you win a game.” 

Lee was equally enamored. He discussed not only Knueppel’s shooting and the ability to do the little things that often get overlooked, but also his competitiveness. 

The coach pointed to a Summer League game the team played shortly after Knueppel had to have stitches to fix a cut above his eye.

Read more: Hornets Fans Capitalize on Summer League Championship in Lean Times

“He gets stitches over his eye and I don’t know if he should play or not play and he says, ‘I’m playing,’” Lee recalled. “I think he just relishes the opportunity to play in every game and do whatever he can to help the team. There’s a winning mentality in Kon [that] I think is undeniable.” 

From my perspective, Knueppel is exactly the type of player this organization needed to add, not just for his skill set and shooting ability, but the intangibles that you can’t put a value on but help a team learn how to win. 

Will this be the season LaMelo Ball finally breaks out? 

LaMelo Ball is supposed to be the leader of the Charlotte Hornets, but to be a leader, you have to show up, and he’s visible far more often on the bench in street clothes than he is on the court. He has reportedly been working on his strength and conditioning in the offseason, focused on staying on the court so he can lead this team. 

Does that include playing smart basketball and not throwing up 30 footers with lots of time left on the clock? Or looking for his teammates rather than the showy play that will end up on a Reels fan edit? Maybe even playing a little defense? 

These are all questions that need to be answered if Ball is to lead the Hornets out of the malaise of mediocrity to become a team to be reckoned with. 

Read more: Hornets Shake Things Up in Uncharacteristically Active Offseason

I asked how adding shooters to the team might help Ball’s game. 

“Just spacing the floor. The whole floor is going to be open now,” he said. “You drive, you got a shooter in the corner, you got a shooter open there, it makes the defense way harder now because they have to guard everything. It just opens the whole game up.” 

In his first five seasons, Ball has appeared in one All-Star Game, and for the Hornets to take the next step, he’s going to have to reach the heights originally predicted for him. That means staying on the court, getting everyone involved, locking in on defense and having a more serious outlook than his usual laissez-faire attitude. 

Will the Hornets stay healthy this season? 

Ball isn’t the only Hornets player coming back from a serious injury. Brandon Miller, Tre Mann and Grant Williams all suffered season-ending injuries at separate points last year, totaling just 56 games between the trio last year. 

Miller is the team’s second-best player and has the potential to be their top guy, but to do that he has to stay on the court and make a jump this season. He’s been good, but I expected more when the Hornets jumped up to the second pick to get him a few years back. 

I saw a player who started to dominate at Alabama with outside shooting and the ability to run an offense and attack the basket the second half of that season, along with playing tough defense and ripping off some boards.

I had hoped to have seen that version of Miller at least begin to show in The League by now. It’s time for him to step it up. His third season will tell a lot about him if he can remain healthy. 

Lee said he thinks Miller is getting better at driving to the hoop but has to finish better and convert some of those baskets or draw fouls and get to the line. He agreed that driving was a strong suit for Miller in college but emphasized that the NBA is poles apart from the NCAA. 

Speaking for himself, Miller said he’s excited about the new roster going into the season. 

“I feel like my teammates are going to make me better and I’m going to do the same and lead them on and always be there for them,” he said.  

Mann was starting to come into his own last season before his injury. The Hornets thought enough of him to sign him to a new three-year contract over the summer despite him playing only 13 games last year. 

Williams adds a toughness this team needs, along with some attitude, when he’s on the court. The question of health, especially that of the key players, will help determine how successful this season will be for Charlotte 

New kids on the block

In addition to Knueppel, the Charlotte Hornets added three other draft picks including first rounder Liam McNeeley, who was acquired with a pick from the Mark Williams Draft Day trade. He’s a similar player to Knueppel in that he plays smart, can shoot, and maybe has something to prove after slipping to 29 in the draft. 

McNeeley had a strong showing in two Summer League games before his playing time in Vegas was cut short by an Achille’s injury, giving both optimists and pessimists something to chew on. 

Sion James is a prototypical NBA defender in the style of a Lu Dort or Alex Caruso. Ryan Kalkbrenner adds needed size in the middle and has shot-blocking abilities, though I don’t know if he will be limber enough to defend both the basket and the perimeter. He’ll likely share time with the Energizer Bunny that is Moussa Diabate, who can defend and is a monster on the offensive boards in the middle. Mason Plumlee is also back. 

Another key addition is Collin Sexton, who is not only insurance against another Ball injury but a player who can light ‘em up, run an offense and put the ball in the basket. He was a steal in the trade with Utah and could help this team outperform expectations. 

An interesting player to watch this season will be Tidjane Salaun. In his second season after being selected sixth by the Hornets in the 2024 draft, will he take a step and look more like an NBA power forward or continue at times to look lost on the court and go down as a reach by Peterson? 

Keep an eye on his progress and a player the Hornets passed on in Matas Buzelis, who many (including me) are speculating will have a breakout season this year. 

I don’t think the Hornets will be repeating their Summer League championship when it counts during the NBA season, but I do think there’s hope for the future with the additions to this roster, given some luck on the health side. 

With the East being low on star players due to early season-ending injuries, the Hornets have a chance to jump up in the standings and at least make the play-in tournament. It might not be much, but for a starved fanbase, a little hope can go a long way.