Naz Reid and Hannes Steinbach join Moussa Diabate, Ryan Kalkbrenner and Grant Williams in a Hornets frontcourt one executive calls real depth at five spots.
Speaking anonymously with Keith Smith of Spotrac at Summer League in Las Vegas, a Charlotte Hornets front office executive was asked about the frontcourt.
"Last year we went into the season knowing Moussa (Diabate) was better than anyone else knew. We hoped Ryan Kalkbrenner would give us something. We hoped Grant Williams would come back and give us a small-ball option at the five. All three happened," the executive said. "Now, we add Naz Reid and Hannes Steinbach to that mix? That's real depth and they're all different kinds of players. That'll give (head coach) Charles (Lee) a lot to work with this season."
Moussa Diabate opened last season behind Ryan Kalkbrenner and finished it as Charlotte's starting center. He played 73 games with 47 starts and averaged 7.9 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 26.0 minutes, shooting 63.1% from the field and 65.9% from the line. His 3.7 offensive rebounds per game ranked fifth in the NBA, and he won the Hustle Award. Charlotte converted his two-way deal into a two-year, $4.6 million contract in 2025.
Kalkbrenner went No. 34 in the 2025 draft out of Creighton, where he spent five seasons. The 7-foot-1 center averaged 7.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks as a rookie, shooting 75.3% from the field and leading all rookies in blocks.
In Las Vegas, Kalkbrenner averaged 5.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 3.7 blocks, shooting 57.1% from the field.
Williams tore the ACL in his right knee on Nov. 23, 2024, against the Milwaukee Bucks, had surgery on Dec. 11, and was given a 9-to-12-month timeline. He made his season debut in January and appeared in 36 games, averaging 7.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 19.8 minutes, shooting 42.6% from the field and 38.8% from 3.
Reid came over from the Minnesota Timberwolves on June 25 in the LaMelo Ball trade, having averaged 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists last season on 45.6% shooting from the field and 36.2% from deep. He won Sixth Man of the Year in 2023-24 after averaging 13.5 points and 5.2 rebounds and shooting 41.4% from 3. He went undrafted out of LSU in 2019 and is scheduled to earn $21,551,724 in 2026-27.
Steinbach was the last lottery pick of the 2026 draft at No. 14. The 6-foot-11 forward from Würzburg, Germany, averaged 18.5 points across 30 games in his one season at Washington and led Germany to a runner-up finish at the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup with 17.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game.
Steinbach recorded three double-doubles in five Summer League games, putting up 15 points and 11 rebounds against the Orlando Magic in the opener, 27 points and 15 rebounds on 13-of-22 shooting against Milwaukee in his first start, and 22 points and 11 rebounds against the Sacramento Kings. He averaged 15.8 points and 3.4 offensive rebounds for the trip and did not make a 3-pointer until his fifth game.
Hornets coach Charles Lee is expected to start Coby White, Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Reid, and Diabate. Charlotte projected 16 players on standard contracts before adding Dorian Finney-Smith, and the regular-season roster limit is 15.
Charlotte traded Mark Williams to Phoenix and Jusuf Nurkic during the previous offseason, and Mason Plumlee is no longer on the roster.
