Brandon Miller is positioned to be one of the Charlotte Hornets’ biggest keys in the 2026-27 season, and one NBA TV voice thinks that leap could come with hardware attached.
After a busy offseason, Charlotte has shifted its focus toward building around Miller and Kon Knueppel. The biggest headline move was shipping All-Star guard LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Naz Reid and draft capital, a deal that immediately changes the shape of the offense.
With Ball out of the picture, Miller should have more room to take command. That’s part of why Mo Dakhil picked him as his choice for Most Improved Player.
"It's gonna be Brandon Miller for me from Charlotte," NBATV contributor Mo Dakhil said. "He's gonna get a bigger opportunity now with LaMelo gone.
He's gonna get more reps on the ball. He's gonna show more of what he can do with the ball in his hands more often.
They're going to need him to do a lot more offensively..."
Miller already showed plenty last season. He averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and a steal per game while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 38.3 percent from three. The production was strong enough to put him firmly on the radar as a player ready for another jump.
"He was on my shortlist for this category," Zach Lowe said. "Charlotte's surge last year coincided exactly with Brandon Miller getting healthy and getting a consistently available 20 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST last year.
My hesitation with selecting him was that a lot of the voters are just stats-driven. They're not gonna watch 40 Hornets games."
Even with Charlotte operating outside the spotlight of a major market, Miller isn’t being dismissed. A true All-Star-level season would put him squarely in the Most Improved Player conversation and make him even more central to the Hornets’ long-term plans.
His offensive package already gives Charlotte something to build on. He can score from all three levels, and if his efficiency climbs, the Hornets could be looking at one of the league’s better scoring forwards.
The team doesn’t carry much buzz heading into 2026-27, but it does have a workable roster. If Miller takes the kind of step people are projecting, Charlotte could be in the mix for a second straight Play-In push.
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