Charlotte Hornets News

Home

Quizzes

Watch

Newsletter

Jun 22, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Malik Monk (Kentucky) is introduced by NBA commissioner Adam Silver as the number eleven overall pick to the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Comprehensive history of Charlotte Hornets lottery picks

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated May 8, 2025 9:30 AM ET

The NBA draft lottery has been around since 1985. The Charlotte Hornets have been around since 1988. In the 1990s, the Hornets were good enough to avoid the lottery frequently, but in the 200s, 2010s, and certainly the 2020s, they've not had the good fortune. How have those picks turned out?

1988

In 1988, the Hornets picked Rex Chapman with the eighth pick. They could've picked Dan Majerle or Rod Strickland, but this class wasn't terribly deep. Chapman ended up playing four years with Charlotte and averaged 16.2 points.

1989

In 1989, the Hornets took J.R. Reid locally out of UNC. He went fifth overall, and they could've drafted Nick Anderson, Mookie Blaylock, Tim Hardaway, Shawn Kemp, or Vlade Divac instead. Reid played six years with the Hornets, but they were not all consecutive.

1990

Picking fifth again in 1990, the Hornets took Kendall Gill. This was a good pick for them, and it was a fairly weak draft class outside the top few players. Gill unfortunately only played in Charlotte for four years, but he averaged 15.6 points per game during that time - his best tenure scoring-wise with any team.

1991

The only time Charlotte has ever picked first in the lottery was in 1991, and they selected Larry Johnson. They could've had Dikembe Mutombo, Steve Smith, or Dale Davis. Johnson played 10 years, split evenly between Charlotte and the New York Knicks, though he was much better with Charlotte.

1992

In 1992, Charlotte picked second overall. They landed Alonzo Mourning. He went ahead of PJ Brown and Latrell Sprewell, but this was another good pick. Charlotte missed out on Shaquille O'Neal first overall. Mourning was a two-time All-Star with Charlotte, and he made the Hall of Fame.

1996

In 1996, the Hornets took Kobe Bryant. This was their selection, as it wasn't a rights trade or anything like that (a la Shai Gilgeous-Alexander). He was then traded about two weeks later, so it was a huge missed opportunity. The Hornets could've taken Steve Nash, but it's hard to say Bryant wasn't the right pick. He just didn't want to play here.

1999

In 1999, the Hornets selected Baron Davis with the third overall pick. This was not a bad pick, although Lamar Odom and Jason Terry were on the board. Davis scored 16.1 points per game for his career, but he only played three years in Charlotte.

2004

In 2004, now as the Bobcats, Charlotte selected Emeka Okafor second overall. He went over Ben Gordon, Shaun Livingston, Luol Deng, Andre Igoudala, Josh Smith, J.R. Smith, and Kevin Martin. Okafor played five seasons with the Bobcats and averaged a double-double.

2005

In 2005, the Bobcats picked fifth overall. They landed Raymond Felton out of UNC, but they could've had David Lee, Monta Ellis, or Lou Williams. In five seasons with Charlotte, Felton averaged 13.3 points and 6.4 assists.

2006

This is the infamous Adam Morrison year. He was picked third, but Charlotte could've taken Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, JJ Reddick, Rajon Rondo, Kyle Lowry, or Paul Millsap. Morrison was out of Charlotte in 2008-09 and out of the NBA in 2010-2011.

2008

In 2008, the Bobcats went with DJ Augustin ninth overall. They passed on Brook Lopez, Roy Hibbert, Nicolas Batum, and DeAndre Jordan. Augustin made the All-Rookie team with Charlotte that year but didn't get any other accolades.

2011

In 2011, Charlotte drafted Kemba Walker ninth overall. As the arguable best player in franchise history, it's hard to complain about this pick. However, Klay Thompson, Kawhi Leonard, and Jimmy Butler went later. Walker is the all-time leading scorer in franchise history.

2012

2012 is the infamous lottery failure year. Even after seven wins, they did not get the first pick. They took Michael Kidd-Gilchrist second overall over Damian Lillard, Andre Drummond, Bradley Beal, or Harrison Barnes. MGK played eight seasons with the Hornets.

2013

In 2013, the Hornets took Cody Zeller fourth. This wasn't a terrible pick, but they still passed on CJ McCollum, Steven Adams, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Rudy Gobert. Zeller averaged 7.9 points and 5.7 rebounds for his Hornets tenure.

2014

In 2014, Charlotte drafted Noah Vonleh with the ninth overall pick. They could have drafted Zach LaVine, Jusuf Nurkic, or Clint Capela. Vonleh only lasted a single season with the Hornets after being drafted.

2015

Again picking ninth, Charlotte selected Frank Kaminsky in 2015. They passed on Myles Turner, Devin Booker, and Terry Rozier. Kaminsky played four years with Charlotte, and he averaged 9.8 points per game.

2017

In 2017, Charlotte drafted Malik Monk 11th overall. This was after a big slide, so it's hard to fault them, but they could've listened to Steve Clifford and had Donovan Mitchell. They could've also had Bam Adebayo, John Collins, or Kyle Kuzma. Monk eventually became a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, but not with Charlotte.

2018

In 2018, after trading the rights to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the Hornets picked Miles Bridges 12th overall. He's been a good pick for them, though Jalen Brunson did go later. Bridges was arguably the best pick there, but SGA is obviously an MVP candidate now. Bridges is the longest-tenured Hornet.

2019

Again with the 12th pick, the Hornets took PJ Washington in 2019. This was another good pick, although Tyler Herro might've been slightly better. Washington was traded to the Dallas Mavericks last year, but he averaged 13 points and 5.5 rebounds for the Hornets.

2020

Thanks to some lottery luck, Charlotte picked third in 2020 and landed LaMelo Ball. This was probably the best pick they could've made here, though there's a case to be made for Tyrese Haliburton. Charlotte probably still goes with Ball in a redo, though. Ball is a one-time All-Star.

2021

In 2021, Charlotte had two picks in the first round. One was in the lottery, and they picked James Bouknight 11th. This was a huge miss, as he was a bust and they passed on Alperen Sengun, Tre Mann, Trey Murphy, Jalen Johnson, and Cam Thomas. Bouknight played 79 games in the NBA.

2022

In 2022, the Hornets had a lottery pick but traded the rights to 12th overall pick Jalen Duren to the Detroit Pistons, so they didn't get a lottery pick this year. They did get Mark Williams 15th, though.

2023

In 2023, the Hornets landed Brandon Miller after missing out just barely on the Victor Wembanyama lottery. They could've had Amen Thompson, but so far, Miller looks like the right pick. Miller was averaging over 20 points per game before getting hurt in his sophomore season.

2024

The Hornets picked sixth in 2024 and took Tidjane Salaun. The jury is out on him, but the early returns suggest it was a miss. They could've taken Donovan Clingan, Matas Buzelis, Dalton Knecht, or Kel'el Ware.