Dennis Schroder is settling into Charlotte with a clear sense of excitement.
The Hornets landed the veteran guard in the offseason, sending Tre Mann to Cleveland in a deal that also brought back cash considerations. Schroder said he is “ really happy” to be on the team, and Charlotte is counting on that experience to matter in a reshaped backcourt.
Schroder’s path to the Hornets has been a busy one. The 32-year-old has been in the NBA since 2013 and has already worn plenty of jerseys along the way, including those of the Atlanta Hawks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers twice, Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets, Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors, Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings and Cavaliers. He arrived in Charlotte after Cleveland had acquired him from Sacramento last season.
His numbers have shifted depending on role and situation. Schroder averaged 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game with the Kings, then posted 8.2 points and 4.3 assists per game with the Cavaliers. For his career, he has averaged 13.7 points and 4.9 assists in the regular season and 10.7 points and 3.4 assists in the playoffs.
In Charlotte, Schroder is set to back up Coby White, who is the Hornets’ new starting point guard in the post-LaMelo Ball era. That move is part of a larger reset for the team, with Ball and Miles Bridges gone and Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel expected to carry more of the offense.
Miller’s third NBA season was a productive one. He played in 65 games last year and averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 43.5% from the field, 38.3% from 3-point range and 89.2% from the free-throw line. He enters this season with career averages of 19.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game after going No. 2 overall in the 2023 draft.
Knueppel also made a strong first impression. Even though he did not win the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year award, he averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, shot 47.5% from the field, 42.5% from 3 and 86.3% from the line, and led the NBA in 3-pointers.
Charlotte’s projected starting group this season is White, Miller, Knueppel, Naz Reid and Moussa Diabaté. On paper, it gives the Hornets a lineup with real offensive punch. The team went 44-38 last season, beat the Miami Heat in the 9-10 play-in game, then lost to the Orlando Magic in the 8-9 game and missed the playoffs again.
The franchise has not reached the postseason since 2016, and Schroder arrives as another experienced piece for a team trying to move forward. He also knows what his role should look like better in Charlotte than it did in Cleveland, where James Harden and Donovan Mitchell were ahead of him in the pecking order.
In Other News...
Hornets Fans Wont All Agree On This Brandon Miller Trade Idea
Any talk of moving Brandon Miller is bound to get a reaction in Charlotte, especially when the idea comes attached to a three-team swap involving the Warriors and Magic. The proposal would shake up all three rosters and alter the balance of the deal beyond just one headline name, which is why it has drawn attention even before anyone gets into the finer points of salary matching and the other pieces involved.
For Hornets fans, the uncomfortable part is how much the conversation centers on Miller as a potential trade chip rather than the kind of foundational player Charlotte would normally want to build around. The framework would also require the Hornets to part with additional players while not adding any draft compensation back into the mix, which is the sort of detail that can make a theoretical deal feel very different depending on where you stand on the franchises timeline. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Still Face An Early Rotation Issue Despite Encouraging Injury Signs
Charles Lee had a little better news on the Hornets injury front, with Kon Knueppel and Grant Williams both making steady progress from hamstring injuries suffered during offseason activities. The two are being brought along gradually on the court, which at least gives Charlotte some optimism as camp and the preseason move along.
Still, the rotation picture remains a bit unsettled because both players will miss the preseason and wont be checked again until the first week of the regular season. For a Hornets group trying to get its pieces organized early, the challenge now is balancing patience with the need to build chemistry before the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Put A Lot On Brandon Miller After Two Major Exits
The Hornets are heading into the new season with a very different look after moving on from LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges, and the early read on the roster suggests a heavier burden for Brandon Miller. With two of the teams biggest names gone, Charlotte is leaning on a reshaped backcourt and frontcourt mix as it tries to keep the offense organized and competitive from the start.
Brandon Miller is expected to carry more of the playmaking load, and the opening rotation only adds to the pressure on him. Kon Knueppels hamstring issue could delay his debut, which leaves Charlotte a little thinner on the wing than it hoped, and the group the Hornets plan to open with has a lot riding on how quickly the new pieces fit together. [Read more 🡒]