How does life after LaMelo look?
NBA analyst Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report has one big question for the Charlotte Hornets at training camp.
How does life after LaMelo Ball look?
Charlotte was very busy in the offseason. The front office traded Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Miles Bridges to the Phoenix Suns, Tre Mann to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Dorian Finney-Smith to the Atlanta Hawks (the Hornets acquired Finney-Smith from the Houston Rockets).
The Hornets acquired Naz Reid from the Timberwolves, Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale from the Suns, Dennis Schroder from the Cavaliers and Buddy Hield from the Hawks. Hield was then traded to the Chicago Bulls for Rob Dillingham.
Charlotte also re-signed Coby White, who will start at point guard this season alongside Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Reid and Moussa Diabate.
The Hornets never made the playoffs in the Ball-Bridges era. They haven't made the playoffs since 2016.
It will be intriguing to see if Charlotte can snap its playoff drought in Year 1 of the post-Ball-Bridges era.
Charlotte opens the 2026-27 season on the road against the Brooklyn Nets. The home opener is against the Hawks.
Miller and Knueppel are the new franchise players in Charlotte with Ball and Bridges gone. Both youngsters have a lot of untapped potential.
Miller appeared in 65 games for the Hornets last season, his third year in the NBA. He averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game while shooting 43.5% from the field, 38.3% from beyond the arc and 89.2% from the free-throw line.
Meanwhile, even though Knueppel didn't win the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year award, he still had a special season for the Hornets. The swingman averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game and shot 47.5% from the field, 42.5% from 3 and 86.3% from the free-throw line. He led the NBA in 3-pointers.
Miller enters this upcoming season with career averages of 19.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. He was the second overall pick in the 2023 draft.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, the Hornets could sign Miller to a $208 million rookie-scale extension. If Charlotte and Miller don't agree to a rookie-scale extension for whatever reason, Miller will become a restricted free agent next offseason.
Many Hornets fans are excited to watch Reid play. Reid won the 2023-24 Sixth Man of the Year award. He enters this season with regular-season averages of 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game and playoff averages of 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.
For Minnesota last season, Reid averaged 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game while shooting 45.6% from the field, 36.2% from beyond the arc and 73.2% from the free-throw line. He recorded six double-doubles.
