The re-emergence of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, however, should have Hornet fans giddy.

Coach Clifford pegged Zeller as still having вЂњ a long way to goвЂќ as he works through a right knee bone bruise, as the team will have to fall back on second-year big Frank Kaminsky and Spencer Hawes to provide the sort of all-around punch up front that will be needed to keep teams guessing.

The Hornets were hoping that this was Cody ZellerвЂ™s year, and in an 82-game turn it might very well be, but the athletic big manвЂ™s knee issues may get in the way of things. Lee may confound with his inconsistency, but he also shot 39 percent from deep in 2015-16. LinвЂ™s unpredictable game and derring-do was a 2nd quarter League Pass highlight last season, and the team will miss having that option even with Sessions spiraling to the basket. Jefferson may be on the downside of his career, but he repeatedly helped Charlotte make up for lost plays, deep into the shot clock, with his touch down low. Lin (to Brooklyn), Courtney Lee (New York) and Al Jefferson (to Indiana) are gone, however, and the team will miss each of the three significantly. The Hornets also signed up to take a flier on Roy Hibbert at his absolute low point, acquiring one of the more formidable forces in recent Eastern Conference history to a one-year, $5 million deal to rehabilitate his career. That parsimony may have also been in place when the team sent contributor Troy Daniels to Memphis on a sign-and-trade deal, but it certainly wasnвЂ™t a factor when Charlotte inked Marvin Williams to a four-year, $54 million deal, or when it brought in journeyman point man Ramon Sessions (coming off a batch of inspired ball in Washington) on a two-year, $12.5 million deal. 22 pick Malachi RichardsonвЂ™s contract still chugs along). We agree with coach Clifford in the knowledge that Belinelli, even on his worst nights, will still act as a far more reliable contributor than those taken around that stage of the 2016 draft, but the move whiffs of the typical Michael Jordan mix of win-now Г©lan, mixed with a little parsimony post-2017 (when No. The team is hoping for a Batum-like bounce back year from Marco Belinelli, a veteran shooting guard that shot terribly from the perimeter with Sacramento in 2015-16 prior to being shipped to Charlotte on NBA draft night for the teamвЂ™s No. The Hornets mostly held serve, as they had to, sending a maxed-out five-year, $120 million contract to Batum as soon as the offseason began hoping that the 27-year oldвЂ™s play through his prime more closely resembles his 2015-16 turn (when he also led Charlotte in assists) than his lost 2014-15 season in Portland. And, until proven otherwise, it may not have hurt the teamвЂ™s chances either. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. His spacing and ball-handling presence helped Walker play a freer brand of basketball both inside and out, with and without the rock. The deal for Batum, at the cost of 2014 lottery pick Noah Vonleh, proved to be a massive win: Charlotte played exceptionally well with the swingman on the court, and he made life infinitely easier for his once-desperate teammates. Internal development was the order of the day as lead guard Kemba Walker shot to the ranks of near-All-Star level while nailing 37 percent of his threes, a career-high in shooting percentage alongside averaging 20.9 points per game. MKG would go on to play just seven games for the squad, but somehow coach Steve Clifford led the team on a 48-win turn that tied them with three other teams in the Eastern Conference. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was knocked out of a heavy chunk of the season during the teamвЂ™s training camp with a bum shoulder, limiting the teamвЂ™s options even in the wake of the acquisition of Nicolas Batum (coming off of his lousiest season) during the summer prior. The 2015-16 campaign was supposed to be cut short before it even started.

Charlotte hornets roster 2015 2016