Hornets (1-1) at Celtics (2-0) Preseason Game #3 10/14/26

[Goldstar88]

This Charlotte team is pretty awful. The rookie Anderson does some nice things.

They are missing 2 of their starters, Kon and Coby.  They should be around .500 this year.

Are they still a .500 team without LaMelo?

Around .500 I would think. Coby White, Kon, B-Miller, Naz, and Diabatte is decent. Good bench depth, too.

[RodyTur10]

This Charlotte team is pretty awful. The rookie Anderson does some nice things.

They are missing 2 of their starters, Kon and Coby.  They should be around .500 this year.

Are they still a .500 team without LaMelo?

I don't think so. They'll miss him a lot.

[Phantom255x]

Charlotte will take a step back this season, maybe they hover around .500 but their depth is pretty thin so a few injuries early could put them in deep trouble. Naz Reid was a good addition but at the expense of LaMelo for what he could do, idk. Maybe Kon and Diabate take the next step but I'd be surprised if it happened fast where they launch Charlotte into legit playoff contention immediately. Still have a good shot at the play-in with the way the bottom of the East (still) is

[Vermont Green]

They traded Miles Bridges also and did not get that much back for him in my opinion.  I don't see how they can avoid a step back.  I understand them moving on from Ball and Bridges, they were not going to take them all that far, but I see them very much as rebuilding.  Naz Reid will likely garner trade deadline interest.

[Goldstar88]

Charlotte will take a step back this season, maybe they hover around .500 but their depth is pretty thin so a few injuries early could put them in deep trouble. Naz Reid was a good addition but at the expense of LaMelo for what he could do, idk. Maybe Kon and Diabate take the next step but I'd be surprised if it happened fast where they launch Charlotte into legit playoff contention immediately. Still have a good shot at the play-in with the way the bottom of the East (still) is

They have a ton of depth, which is why I could see them with a similar record to last year. I also expect Brandon Miller to have a big year.

Starters: White, Kon, B-Miller, Naz, Diabate
Bench: Schroeder, Grayson Allen, Sion James, Kalkbrenner, Grant Williams, Royce O?Neale, Salaun

[Who]

Charlotte were playing at a 56 win pace after putting Diabate into the starting lineup in late December (45 games). So even if they take a big step back without LaMelo, they could still be a solid .500 team.