Charlotte Hornets Roster/Cap Update, First Round Ramifications
How will the Hornets first round impact the rest of the off-season?
Following the additions of Kon Kneuppel and Liam McNeeley in the draft, along with the trade of Mark Williams, the Hornets' roster construction and cap situation have taken a sharp turn. With several moving parts and key decisions still to come, here’s a breakdown of where things stand — and what it could mean for the rest of Charlotte’s off-season.
If the Hornets bring back Tre Mann, guarantee the contracts of Josh Okogie and Moussa Diabaté, and sign both early second-round picks to standard deals, they’d be sitting at 15 guaranteed contracts — leaving no open roster spots for free agents.
That outcome feels unlikely. More plausible is that Charlotte targets a draft-and-stash prospect with one of those second-rounders (Penda, Markovic, Zikarsky) or trades back for a later pick to sign a player to a two-way contract. Either path would keep one standard roster spot open, likely earmarked for a veteran addition in free agency.
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Even after those decisions, the Hornets would be about $25 million over the salary cap but roughly $8 million below the luxury tax. That cushion could grow depending on Tre Mann’s new deal. If he re-signs below his $14.7 million cap hold — say, around $8 million — it would create enough space to use the full $14.1 million mid-level exception.
Still, that’s a big “if.” The Hornets have never used their full MLE on a free agent, and it’s fair to question whether they’d really want to operate that close to the tax line. For a team still in the early stages of a rebuild, maintaining a $10–12 million buffer below the tax would offer far more flexibility for in-season trades or absorbing salary in longer-term deals.
As things stand, assuming Charlotte doesn’t use both second-round picks on standard contracts, the likeliest outcome is using that final roster spot on a veteran minimum deal. Who that player is — and what role they might fill — will become clearer after the second round wraps up. But with the current roster skewing young, expect a steady hand in the locker room — someone who can fill a Taj Gibson-style role — ideally at point guard or center, depending on how the draft shakes out.
🎧 Stay tuned for a Buzz Beat+ episode releasing later today detailing the Hornets’ cap sheet and free agency options.