2024–25 Charlotte Hornets season

The 2024–25 Charlotte Hornets season is the 35th season for the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). This also became the second season where Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall would take on majority ownership of the Hornets franchise after buying majority shares from Michael Jordan during the month of August 2023. On April 3, 2024, the Hornets announced that Steve Clifford would step down as head coach at the end of the 2023–24 season and move into a front-office advisory role.^[1] On May 9, 2024, the Hornets hired Charles Lee as their new head coach.^[2]

2024–25 Charlotte Hornets season
Head coach	Charles Lee
General manager	Jeff Peterson
President	Fred Whitfield
Owner(s)	Gabe Plotkin & Rick Schnall
Arena	Spectrum Center
Results
Record	2–3 (.400)
Place	Division: 4th (Southeast) Conference: 11th (Eastern)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	FanDuel Sports Network South · FanDuel Sports Network Southeast
Radio	WFNZ
< 2023–24 2025–26 >

Draft

Main article: 2024 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position(s)	Nationality	College / club
1	6	Tidjane Salaün	PF	France	Cholet Basket
2	42	KJ Simpson	PG	United States	Colorado

The Hornets entered the draft (which was two days instead of one like it had been since the NBA draft was shortened down to two rounds back in 1989) with one first-round pick and one second-round pick.^[3][4] On the first night of the draft, the Hornets would select the French power forward Tidjane Salaün from the Cholet Basket in the recently rebranded LNB Élite as the 6th pick. Then, on the second day of the draft, the Hornets would select point guard KJ Simpson from the University of Colorado.

Roster

Charlotte Hornets roster

• v
• t
• e

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From G 1 Ball, LaMelo 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-08-22 SPIRE Academy (OH) F 0 Bridges, Miles 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1998-03-21 Michigan State G 30 Curry, Seth 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1990-08-23 Duke C 14 Diabaté, Moussa (TW) 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 2002-01-21 Michigan F/C 67 Gibson, Taj 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 232 lb (105 kg) 1985-06-24 USC G/F 10 Green, Josh 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-11-16 Arizona G/F 3 Jeffries, DaQuan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 222 lb (101 kg) 1997-08-30 Tulsa G 23 Mann, Tre 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2001-02-03 Florida F 11 Martin, Cody 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1995-09-28 Nevada G 22 Micić, Vasilije 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1994-01-13 Serbia G/F 24 Miller, Brandon 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2002-11-22 Alabama G 27 Rhoden, Jared (TW) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1999-08-27 Seton Hall C 4 Richards, Nick 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1997-11-29 Kentucky F 31 Salaün, Tidjane 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 2005-08-10 France G 25 Simpson, KJ (TW) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 189 lb (86 kg) 2002-08-08 Colorado G 8 Smith, Nick Jr. 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2004-04-18 Arkansas F 2 Williams, Grant 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 236 lb (107 kg) 1998-11-30 Tennessee C 5 Williams, Mark  7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 242 lb (110 kg) 2001-12-16 Duke

Head coach Charles Lee Assistant coach(es) D.J. Bakker Jermaine Bucknor Ryan Frazier Matt Hill Chris Jent Josh Longstaff Blaine Mueller Zach Peterson Lamar Skeeter Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended (GL) On assignment to G League affiliate (TW) Two-way affiliate player Injured Roster Last transaction: October 21, 2024

Standings

Division

Southeast Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div	GP
Orlando Magic	3	3	.500	–	2‍–‍0	1‍–‍3	1–0	6
Washington Wizards	2	2	.500	–	1‍–‍2	1‍–‍0	2–0	4
Miami Heat	2	2	.500	–	1‍–‍2	1‍–‍0	1–1	4
Charlotte Hornets	2	3	.400	0.5	1‍–‍2	1‍–‍1	0–2	5
Atlanta Hawks	2	4	.333	1.0	2‍–‍2	0‍–‍2	1–2	6

Conference

Eastern Conference
#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB	GP
1	Cleveland Cavaliers *	6	0	1.000	–	6
2	Boston Celtics *	5	1	.833	1.0	6
3	New York Knicks	3	2	.600	2.5	5
4	Orlando Magic *	3	3	.500	3.0	6
5	Brooklyn Nets	3	3	.500	3.0	6
6	Chicago Bulls	3	3	.500	3.0	6
7	Washington Wizards	2	2	.500	3.0	4
8	Miami Heat	2	2	.500	3.0	4
9	Charlotte Hornets	2	3	.400	3.5	5
10	Atlanta Hawks	2	4	.333	4.0	6
11	Indiana Pacers	2	4	.333	4.0	6
12	Philadelphia 76ers	1	3	.250	4.0	4
13	Milwaukee Bucks	1	4	.200	4.5	5
14	Toronto Raptors	1	5	.167	5.0	6
15	Detroit Pistons	1	5	.167	5.0	6

Game log

Preseason

During the preseason, the Hornets would play their final games under what was previously named Bally Sports South and Bally Sports Southeast. Bally Sports would rebrand itself to the FanDuel Sports Network before the start of the regular season.^[5][6]

2024 preseason game log Total: 2–3 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–2)
Preseason: 2–3 (home: 1–1; road: 1–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 6 New York L 109–111 LaMelo Ball (18) Nick Richards (9) LaMelo Ball (7) Spectrum Center 10,486 0–1 2 October 8 Miami W 111–108 LaMelo Ball (24) Moussa Diabaté (10) Ball, Mann (4) Spectrum Center 10,093 1–1 3 October 10 @ Memphis W 119–94 Brandon Miller (22) Nick Richards (11) Vasilije Micić (4) FedExForum 13,411 2–1 4 October 15 @ New York L 105–111 Brandon Miller (26) Tidjane Salaün (8) LaMelo Ball (7) Madison Square Garden 19,355 2–2 5 October 17 @ Indiana L 116–121 (OT) Brandon Miller (20) Tidjane Salaün (14) KJ Simpson (5) Gainbridge Fieldhouse 11,835 2–3
2024–25 preseason schedule

Regular season

2024–25 game log Total: 2–3 (Home: 1–2; Road: 1–1)
October: 2–2 (home: 1–1; road: 1–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 1 October 23 @ Houston W 110–105 LaMelo Ball (34) Miles Bridges (9) LaMelo Ball (11) Toyota Center 18,055 1–0 2 October 25 @ Atlanta L 120–125 LaMelo Ball (34) Nick Richards (13) Grant Williams (6) State Farm Arena 14,433 1–1 3 October 26 Miami L 106–114 LaMelo Ball (27) Nick Richards (12) LaMelo Ball (7) Spectrum Center 19,102 1–2 4 October 30 Toronto W 138–133 Tre Mann (27) Nick Richards (14) LaMelo Ball (6) Spectrum Center 13,113 2–2
November: 0–1 (home: 0–1; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 5 November 1 Boston L 109–124 LaMelo Ball (31) Bridges, Diabaté, G. Williams (7) Tre Mann (5) Spectrum Center 18,557 2–3 6 November 2 Boston Spectrum Center 7 November 4 @ Minnesota Target Center 8 November 6 Detroit Spectrum Center 9 November 8 Indiana Spectrum Center 10 November 10 @ Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center 11 November 12 @ Orlando Kia Center 12 November 16 Milwaukee Spectrum Center 13 November 17 @ Cleveland Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 14 November 19 @ Brooklyn Barclays Center 15 November 21 Detroit Spectrum Center 16 November 23 @ Milwaukee Fiserv Forum 17 November 25 Orlando Spectrum Center 18 November 27 Miami Spectrum Center 19 November 29 New York Spectrum Center 20 November 30 Atlanta Spectrum Center
December : 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 21 December 3 Philadelphia Spectrum Center 22 December 5 @ New York Madison Square Garden 23 December 7 Cleveland Spectrum Center 24 December 8 @ Indiana Gainbridge Fieldhouse 25 December TBD TBD 26 December TBD TBD 27 December 19 @ Washington Capital One Arena 28 December 20 @ Philadelphia Wells Fargo Center 29 December 23 Houston Spectrum Center 30 December 26 @ Washington Capital One Arena 31 December 28 Oklahoma City Spectrum Center 32 December 30 Chicago Spectrum Center
January : 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 33 January 3 @ Detroit Little Caesars Arena 34 January 5 @ Cleveland Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse 35 January 7 Phoenix Spectrum Center 36 January 9 @ L.A. Lakers Crypto.com Arena 37 January 11 @ L.A. Clippers Intuit Dome 38 January 12 @ Phoenix Footprint Center 39 January 15 @ Utah Delta Center 40 January 17 @ Chicago United Center 41 January 20 Dallas Spectrum Center 42 January 22 @ Memphis FedExForum 43 January 24 Portland Spectrum Center 44 January 25 New Orleans Spectrum Center 45 January 27 L.A. Lakers Spectrum Center 46 January 29 Brooklyn Spectrum Center 47 January 31 L.A. Clippers Spectrum Center
February : 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 48 February 1 Denver Spectrum Center 49 February 3 Washington Spectrum Center 50 February 5 Milwaukee Spectrum Center 51 February 7 San Antonio Spectrum Center 52 February 9 @ Detroit Little Caesars Arena 53 February 10 @ Brooklyn Barclays Center 54 February 12 @ Orlando Kia Center 55 February 20 @ Denver Ball Arena 56 February 22 @ Portland Moda Center 57 February 24 @ Sacramento Golden 1 Center 58 February 25 @ Golden State Chase Center 59 February 27 @ Dallas American Airlines Center
March : 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 60 March 1 Washington Spectrum Center 61 March 3 Golden State Spectrum Center 62 March 5 Minnesota Spectrum Center 63 March 7 Cleveland Spectrum Center 64 March 8 Brooklyn Spectrum Center 65 March 10 @ Miami Kaseya Center 66 March 12 @ Atlanta State Farm Arena 67 March 14 @ San Antonio Frost Bank Center 68 March 18 Atlanta Spectrum Center 69 March 20 New York Spectrum Center 70 March 21 @ Oklahoma City Paycom Center 71 March 23 @ Miami Kaseya Center 72 March 25 Orlando Spectrum Center 73 March 28 @ Toronto Scotiabank Arena 74 March 30 @ New Orleans Spectrum Center 75 March 31 Utah Spectrum Center
April : 0–0 (home: 0–0; road: 0–0) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Record 76 April 2 @ Indiana Gainbridge Fieldhouse 77 April 4 Sacramento Spectrum Center 78 April 6 Chicago Spectrum Center 79 April 8 Memphis Spectrum Center 80 April 9 @ Toronto Scotiabank Arena 81 April 11 @ Boston TD Garden 82 April 13 @ Boston TD Garden
2024–25 season schedule

NBA Cup

Main article: 2024 NBA Cup

The groups were revealed during the tournament announcement on July 12, 2024.^[7][8]

East Group A

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	PD	Qualification
1	New York Knicks	0	0	0	0	0	0	Advance to knockout stage
2	Orlando Magic	0	0	0	0	0	0	Possible knockout stage based on ranking
3	Philadelphia 76ers	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Brooklyn Nets	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	Charlotte Hornets	0	0	0	0	0	0

First game(s) will be played: November 12, 2024. Source: NBA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Transactions

Main article: List of 2024–25 NBA season transactions

Trades

July 6, 2024[9]	To Charlotte Hornets Devonte' Graham 2025 NOP second-round pick	To San Antonio Spurs Cash considerations
July 6, 2024[10]	Six-team trade
	To Charlotte Hornets Josh Green (from Dallas) Reggie Jackson (from Denver) 2029 DEN second-round pick (from Denver) 2030 DEN second-round pick (from Denver)	To Dallas Mavericks Klay Thompson (from Golden State) 2025 GSW second-round pick (from Golden State)
	To Denver Nuggets Cash considerations (from Charlotte)	To Golden State Warriors Kyle Anderson (from Minnesota) Buddy Hield (from Philadelphia)
	To Minnesota Timberwolves 2025 DEN second-round pick (from Golden State via Charlotte) 2031 second-round pick swap (from Golden State) Cash considerations (from Golden State)	To Philadelphia 76ers 2031 DAL second-round pick (from Golden State via Dallas)
October 2, 2024[11]	Three-team trade
	To Charlotte Hornets Charlie Brown Jr. (from New York) DaQuan Jeffries (from New York) Duane Washington Jr. (from New York) 2025 MIN second-round pick (from Minnesota) 2026 GSW second-round pick (from New York) 2031 NYK second-round pick(from New York) Cash considerations (from New York)	To New York Knicks Karl-Anthony Towns (from Minnesota) Draft rights to James Nnaji (2023 No. 31) (from Charlotte)
	To Minnesota Timberwolves Keita Bates-Diop (from New York) Donte DiVincenzo (from New York) Julius Randle (from New York) 2025 DET first-round pick (from New York)

Free agency

Re-signed

Date	Player	Ref.
July 14	Miles Bridges	[12]
July 15	Seth Curry	[13]

Additions

Date	Player	Former team	Ref.
July 13	Taj Gibson	Detroit Pistons	[14]

Subtractions

Date	Player	Reason left	New team	Ref.
July 3	Marques Bolden	Waived		[15]
July 6	Dāvis Bertāns	Waived	BC Dubai	[16]
	Bryce McGowens		Portland Trail Blazers
	Aleksej Pokuševski		KK Partizan
	Devonte' Graham		Portland Trail Blazers	[9]
July 23	Reggie Jackson	Waived	Philadelphia 76ers	[17]

References

1. "Steve Clifford To Step Down As Hornets Head Coach After The Season". NBA.com. April 3, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
2. "Charlotte Hornets Name Charles Lee Head Coach". NBA.com. May 9, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
3. "2024 NBA Draft Order: Picks 1-58". NBA.com. May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
4. Quinn, Sam (May 13, 2024). "2024 NBA Draft order: Complete list of picks as Atlanta Hawks win No. 1 selection in Lottery". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
5. Steinberg, Brian (October 18, 2024). "FanDuel Takes Over Naming Rights to Diamond Sports RSNs". Variety. Retrieved October 19, 2024.
6. "Diamond Sports branded as FanDuel in new deal". ESPN.com. October 18, 2024. Retrieved October 19, 2024.
7. "NBA unveils new logo and game dates for Emirates NBA Cup 2024". NBA.com. July 11, 2024. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
8. "Emirates NBA Cup 2024: Group Draw Results". NBA.com. July 12, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
9. "Charlotte Hornets Acquire Second-Round Pick And Devonte' Graham From San Antonio Spurs". NBA.com. July 6, 2024. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
10. "Charlotte Hornets Acquire Josh Green, Reggie Jackson And Two Second-Round Picks In Six-Team Trade". NBA.com. July 6, 2024. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
11. "Hornets Acquire Three Picks, Three Players In Three-Team Trade". NBA.com. October 2, 2024. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
12. "Charlotte Hornets Re-Sign Miles Bridges". NBA.com. July 14, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
13. "Hornets Re-Sign Seth Curry". NBA.com. July 15, 2024. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
14. "Hornets Sign Taj Gibson". NBA.com. July 13, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
15. Charlotte Hornets PR [@HornetsPR] (July 3, 2024). "OFFICIAL: The @hornets have waived center Marques Bolden. Bolden, who signed a two-way contract with the team last season, averaged 4.1 points and 3.6 rebounds in nine appearances with Charlotte" (Tweet). Retrieved July 24, 2024 – via Twitter.
16. "Charlotte Hornets Waive Davis Bertans, Bryce McGowens And Aleksej Pokusevski". NBA.com. July 6, 2024. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
17. "Hornets Waive Reggie Jackson". NBA.com. July 23, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2024.