Blake Griffin says the Charlotte Hornets are on the right track.
Speaking with Bill Simmons, the former NBA star made it clear he likes what Charlotte is putting together as the franchise heads into the 2026-27 season. That optimism comes after a busy offseason that reshaped the roster and set the table for a new era in Charlotte.
The Hornets moved on from LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges and Tre Mann, sending Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Bridges to the Phoenix Suns and Mann to the Cleveland Cavaliers. In return, Charlotte brought in Naz Reid from Minnesota, Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale from Phoenix, and Dennis Schroder from Cleveland.
Bleacher Report projects the Hornets to finish 41-41 in the first season after Ball and Bridges. Head coach Charles Lee is expected to open with Coby White, Brandon Miller, Kon Knueppel, Reid and Moussa Diabate.
The spotlight now shifts to Miller and Knueppel, who are positioned as the new faces of the franchise. Miller is entering his fourth NBA season after appearing in 65 games last year. He 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% at the line.
Over his career, Miller has posted averages of 19.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. The second overall pick in the 2023 draft is stepping into a bigger leadership role now that Ball and Bridges are gone.
Knueppel, meanwhile, is coming off a huge first season. He didn’t win the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year award, but his production turned plenty of heads anyway. The swingman averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists, shot 47.5% from the field, 42.5% from deep and 86.3% from the free-throw line, and led the NBA in 3-pointers.
Reid is another major piece of the new-look group, and plenty of Hornets fans are eager to see how he fits with White, Miller and Knueppel. Reid was the 2023-24 Sixth Man of the Year and carries regular-season averages of 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game, along with playoff marks of 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
Last season with Minnesota, Reid put up 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game while shooting 45.6% from the field, 36.2% from beyond the arc and 73.2% at the free-throw line. He also logged six double-doubles.
White gives Charlotte another layer, and his ties to North Carolina only deepen the fit. Born and raised in Goldsboro, he starred at Greenfield School in Wilson and played college basketball at UNC before the Hornets acquired him from the Bulls in February. In 21 games with Charlotte, he averaged 15.6 points while shooting 46.1% from the field, 39.1% from 3 and 83.9% from the foul line.
Charlotte opens the 2026-27 season on the road against the Brooklyn Nets. The home opener comes against the Atlanta Hawks.
In Other News...
Hornets Are Positioning For The Move Fans Have Been Waiting On
Jeff Petersons latest update offered a pretty clear read on where the Hornets see themselves right now: still building, but with the kind of optionality that can change quickly. Charlotte has spent the summer stacking financial flexibility and draft capital while reshaping the roster through a flurry of moves, including trades involving LaMelo Ball, Josh Green and Miles Bridges, plus the additions of Naz Reid, Dennis Schrder and a new deal for Coby White. The bigger picture is that the front office is not just collecting pieces for the sake of it, but creating room to chase a specific type of upgrade when the time is right.
For Hornets fans, that is the part worth watching as the team works toward the 2026-27 opener. The organization has leaned into future assets, with several incoming picks and swaps now part of its path forward, and Petersons comments made it clear those tools are meant to be used, not just stored away. The question is less whether Charlotte has the means to make a meaningful addition than when it will decide the market presents the right opening to do it. [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 🡒]