Jeff Peterson didn’t sound like a man thinking small.
In a conversation with Sam Farber on Wednesday’s Hornets Hive Cast, Charlotte’s president of basketball operations pointed to what the franchise now has at its disposal: cap room, draft capital, and the kind of flexibility that can turn into a much bigger swing down the line.
“I think the best spot that you can be in the NBA is being able to stay flexible,” Peterson said. "... we have the flexibility.
We have financial flexibility. We have a surplus of picks to be able to make moves whenever we're ready, whenever we see fit."
That stash of assets has grown fast. Charlotte opened the 2026-27 season Wednesday night against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center, and the roster had already been reshaped by two major July trades.
On July 10, the Hornets sent LaMelo Ball and Josh Green to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a four-team deal. Charlotte came back with Naz Reid, Minnesota's 2033 first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps, and second-round picks in 2029, 2032, and 2033. Julius Randle went from Minnesota to Brooklyn in the same trade.
Then, three days later, Charlotte moved Miles Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick, and a 2027 second-round pick to the Phoenix Suns. The Suns returned Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale, and a 2033 first-rounder. Bridges had been with the Hornets since they selected him in the first round in 2018, making him the team’s longest-tenured player.
Peterson is looking at those moves as more than just roster churn. He wants the draft capital to keep the pipeline moving, but he also made it clear the Hornets are eyeing a larger move if the right player becomes available.
"I'm excited because some of these drafts coming up are still pretty good," Peterson explained. "Of course, we gotta continue to draft players and hit in the draft. At the same time, we do have a treasure chest of picks that we can go out and acquire someone who we've been targeting for quite some time now."
Charlotte has also added Dennis Schröder, who arrived from the Cleveland Cavaliers on Aug. 20, and re-signed Coby White in July on a three-year, $74 million deal.
The front office has continued to work the margins too. Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson, the Hornets’ two first-round picks in June, signed rookie-scale contracts on July 6.
That matters because Charlotte still wants to build through the draft while keeping the option open to make a splash later. The team’s latest moves suggest both timelines are in play.
One of the biggest pieces already in place is Brandon Miller, and Charlotte moved quickly to lock him in. AJ Vaynerchuk and Joey Middleton of VaynerSports, Miller's representatives, told ESPN's Shams Charania about the agreement Monday, the deadline for rookie-scale extensions.
Charlotte drafted Miller second overall in 2023. Last season, he averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 65 games. He also knocked down 204 3-pointers, the most he has made in a season.
His value to the Hornets showed up in the record, too. Charlotte finished 44-38, two seasons after going 19-63. The team was 41-24 with Miller available and 3-14 without him.
The Hornets won their first play-in game, then were blown out 121-90 on the road in the second. Charlotte has not made the playoffs since 2016.
Miller had surgery in May to address instability in his left shoulder, but he was back on the floor for the preseason.
Reid arrives as one of the headline additions in the new-look roster. He went undrafted out of LSU in 2019 and spent his first seven NBA seasons in Minnesota, where he won Sixth Man of the Year for 2023-24. In his career, he has averaged 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists, and he has played in 48 playoff games.
For the opener, Charlotte will be without Kon Knueppel, Grant Williams, and White, all of whom remain on return-to-play plans. Knueppel and Williams have been sidelined by hamstring injuries the team announced Sept. 25, while White strained his left calf at training camp in Charleston, South Carolina.
In Other News...
Hornets New Core Is Earning Attention Ahead Of A Pivotal Season
The Hornets spent the offseason turning over the top of their roster, moving on from LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges and Tre Mann while bringing in Naz Reid, Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale and Dennis Schroder. It is the kind of reshaping that usually comes with a waiting period, but Charlotte appears ready to skip ahead, with Coby White, Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Reid and Moussa Diabate projected to make up the starting group when the season opens.
What makes the new-look lineup interesting is how quickly the conversation around the franchise has shifted toward Miller and Knueppel as the next faces of the team. Thats already drawing notice outside the organization, too, with Blake Griffin telling Bill Simmons that he likes what the Hornets are building. For a team that has spent plenty of time searching for direction, the attention is a sign that this version of Charlotte may have at least changed the way people view its future. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Opener Already Comes With A Rotation Concern Fans Will Notice
The first injury report of the season already gives the Hornets something to monitor as they head toward Wednesdays opener against Brooklyn. Charlotte and Orlando both released availability updates ahead of their season openers, and the Hornets side comes with the usual early-season caution, the kind that can force a coach to shuffle plans before the first game even tips.
Kon Knueppel, Grant Williams and Coby White have all gotten back to individual on-court work, which is encouraging in a broader sense, but none of them will be available for this one. Their absences leave Charlotte with an immediate rotation question to solve, and the team will have to manage those injuries carefully while trying to set a tone right away in the new season. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Open With A Rotation Test Fans Will Notice Fast
The first look at Charlottes 2026-27 season will come on the road against a Brooklyn team still working through a rebuild, and the opening-night setup already has a different feel to it. Even with the Hornets listed as slight favorites away from home, this one carries a little more curiosity than your typical opener because the rotation will be missing some familiar pieces and the margin for error may be thinner than usual.
That pushes the spotlight onto the supporting cast and the way Charlotte chooses to cover for those absences. Defense is expected to be the early identity, but there will also be a need for more from the backcourt and wing depth as the Hornets sort through heavier minutes for Dennis Schroder, Christian Anderson and Grayson Allen. For a team trying to establish itself right away, the first game is already looking less like a formality and more like a test of how quickly the next men up can settle in. [Read more 🡒]