The 2024-25 NBA schedule was released on Thursday. The Charlotte Hornets will kick off their season on the road in Houston to take on the Rockets in game one on October 23rd. There is plenty to look forward to with this young team as they head into a new era for their organization.
Jeff Peterson, Hornets head of basketball operations, will start his first season with a rookie head coach in Charles Lee. A healthy LaMelo Ball with Brandon Miller and the rest of the young talent should exceed expectations. They'll be looking to outperform their 21 wins a season ago.
Rockets' young core will be a good first test in game one
Charlotte and Houston both have younger teams that are expected to take somewhat of a significant leap. The Rockets acquired Reed Sheppard with the third pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, but they've got a bevy of young players, headlined by Alperen Şengün and Jalen Green.
From there, the Hornets have a few winnable games in their first seven, but will play the Boston Celtics in back-to-back games and the Minnesota Timberwolves afterwards. The Celtics are fresh off of an NBA title in 2024 while the T-Wolves made it to their first Western Conference Finals in nearly two decades. Tough three game stretch, but at least they'll play Boston twice on their home floor.
Knicks, Sixers will be tough matchups throughout the holiday season
The Hornets will play the Philadelphia 76ers three times between November and December. They just acquired Paul George as well as other good ancillary veteran pieces as they chase a championship. They also play the New York Knicks twice in that same span. In the fray of the months, they do play a few Eastern Conference teams that made the playoffs in 2024.
The Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Indiana Pacers are in the mix. If healthy, Charlotte could stay afloat until then. There isn't exactly easy games in the NBA anymore with the rapid growth that a lot of teams are making on yearly basis. Some of these playoff teams could look at Charlotte as an easy win and fall asleep at the wheel.
LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and other West coast stars will make January tough
Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and the Phoenix Suns will come early January. The Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers will bring their All-Stars to the Queen City towards the end of the month. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving will bring their new weapon in Klay Thompson during the January as well. It'll be a gauntlet of a month.
In February, they will go on an eight-game home stand that starts with three Eastern Conference teams and five Western Conference teams. So both months will be good measuring sticks to see how the team will fare against likely locks for the postseason in 2025. Some on their home court and others in hostile environments.
Hornets regular season record prediction
The Hornets finished with a 21-61 record and were 13th in the Eastern Conference in the 2023-24 season. With the myriad of injuries to LaMelo Ball and Mark Williams, they struggled to piece wins together. They should be able to win more games by the end of the 2025 season.
Trading Gordon Hayward for younger assets cleared the runway for Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges to man the forward spots. Getting Vasilije Micić and Tre Mann in the deal provided depth in the right spots for Charlotte at guard. Davis Bertans won't be back, but he's not needed as the team features young pieces that need to play and get reps on the floor. Plus they have enough veterans to mix in with the guys. Grant Williams and Seth Curry will help hold down the fort with Taj Gibson.
We're predicting that the Charlotte Hornets will finish the 2025 season with a 37-45 record. The 16 game improvement in the win column could put them in Play-In tournament conversation.
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