The Charlotte Hornets are one NBA team that is fun and entertaining to watch despite being unable to win a championship yet for their franchise. Numerous players from the list that will be discussed have a ton of highlight-worthy plays on their career resumes, and they have an indelible mark on the diehard NBA pundits.
The Hornets organization is relatively new in the Association as well as they started drafting players only in the latter part of the 80s. The current squad is still far from legitimately contending in the conference or the league, but it is great to reminisce on some individuals who donned the Hornets jersey.
The top 10 best draft picks of any team can be a debated, but most are a given in this scenario.
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Ricky Davis
Ricky Davis is a 12-year NBA veteran who was drafted by the Hornets 21st overall in the 1998 NBA Draft. Davis was best known during this stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers or Boston Celtics, but little do fans know that he spent his first two seasons with the Hornets. He received a measly 12 minutes per game in Charlotte as he averaged only 4 PPG.
Even if Davis was used sparingly, his highflying prowess and thunderous jams gained the attention of the NBA fans. Thus, the league invited him to the 2000 NBA Slam Dunk contest wherein he lost to the eventual champion Vince Carter.
Kendall Gill
Kendall Gill was a more coveted prospect heading into the draft as Charlotte chose him fifth overall in the 1990 NBA Draft. Gill had a long career in the association as he played 15 seasons as several of his high-scoring ones were during his time with the Hornets.
Since he was teammates with guys like Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning, Gill had a plethora of open cuts and lanes to the rim, and he definitely took advantage of those opportunities. Gill was selected to the All-Rookie team and a Slam Dunk contest participation in his initial season in the NBA.
Tobias Harris
Tobias Harris is currently known as a reliable fourth or fifth option for a championship-contending squad, but his professional basketball career started in a rough patch. The Charlotte Bobcats snagged him at 19th overall in the 2011 NBA Draft but immediately traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks.
It was ironic for Milwaukee to pursue Harris because he barely got playing time in a squad that was not stacked. It took a couple of years before he found his niche in the Orlando Magic as a reliable starter. Harris has been averaging a steady 16.2 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 12 years in the NBA so far.
Larry J0hnson
The highest draft selection in this piece is Larry Johnson who was chosen as the number one overall pick in the 1991 NBA Draft. Since Johnson was dominant in his UNLV days, there was no question that the hype and stock would translate to the professional ranks.
Johnson was a monster right in his first season with Charlotte as he claimed the Rookie of the Year by averaging 19.2 PPG and 11 RPG. Johnson spent five years with the Hornets organization, and he was a two-time All-Star during that time. He was the first athlete to be selected to the All-Star Game in the history of the franchise, which is a tremendous feat in itself.
Baron Davis
Similar to Johnson, Baron Davis was selected early in the draft as he was third overall in the 1999 NBA Draft. Davis had a slow start to his career as he was the backup point guard, but he eventually got the starting nod in the following two seasons with Charlotte.
Davis was integral to the playoff success of the Hornets as he was the head of the snake in the 2001 and 2002 seasons. In 2002, he was chosen to be part of his first All-Star game as he averaged close to a double-double with Charlotte. Davis had a long 13-year career in the NBA, but all his successes would not have been possible if he did not have a terrific start with Charlotte.
Kemba Walker
One of the most loyal players for the Charlotte franchise is Connecticut point guard Kemba Walker. He spent the first eight seasons of his NBA journey with the Hornets even if there were several years wherein they were not close to competing in the Eastern Conference.
An injury to D.J. Augustin in his rookie year gave him the starting nod, and Walker never looked back. From 2017 until 2020, Walker was selected to the All-Star Game for four successive seasons. Moreover, he had his best career year in 2019 when he earned the award of being a third-team All-NBA player.
LaMelo Ball
LaMelo Ball was projected to be one of the best prospects in the franchise of Charlotte, and he is still on track to do so. Surprisingly, Ball was playing off the bench for the Hornets in the first couple of months of the season.
After he was rewarded to be part of the first unit, Ball never let go of the massive opportunity, and he had an incredible end to his rookie campaign. He received the Rookie of the Year award, then an All-Star game selection in his sophomore season in the NBA. Ball had a remarkable season numbers-wise in his third year, but he only played in 36 contests, so he will need to bounce back on a high note for 2023-24.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the best players in the NBA today. The Los Angeles Clippers committed a legitimate mistake by trading him to the Oklahoma City Thunder, but most NBA fans do not know that it was the Charlotte Hornets that drafted him 11th overall in the 2018 NBA Draft. The Hornets ended up receiving Miles Bridges and draft compensation, but it is obvious that it was a major draft-day blunder.
Gilgeous-Alexander is continuing to expand his repertoire as he enters his sixth season in the association. In his lone year with the Clippers, he was a spectacular role player already, but his move to the Thunder cemented himself as the franchise cornerstone of the squad. As Gilgeous-Alexander enters his prime, the Hornets will continue scratching their head with this unfortunate move.
Alonzo Mourning
Alonzo Mourning is well-known as the key piece in the puzzle of the Miami Heat culture, but he started his NBA career with Charlotte in 1992. Mourning was a second-overall pick, and he started all 78 games played in his rookie campaign. He was part of the All-Rookie team, then eventually for his next two seasons with the Hornets.
Mourning was traded by Charlotte because they knew they could not afford the contract extension he desired. He went on to have a phenomenal career with the Heat as one of the best rim protectors and defensive players of his era.
Kobe Bryant
The brutal mistake of the Charlotte Hornets by trading Kobe Bryant for Vlade Divac in the 1996 NBA Draft will always stand out as one of the best trades in draft day history. Bryant spent all 20 seasons of his magnificent career with the Los Angeles Lakers, but the squad that called his name on the draft was the Hornets.
Charlotte will never get over the fact that they could have been a perennial contender for a myriad of years if they had Bryant in the fold. The Lakers famously gave them the go-signal on who to pick on that night because the trade was agreed upon the day before already. Kobe Bryant will always be one of the best players in the association, and the iconic Mamba Mentality is a phrase that will percolate through any basketball fan in the world.