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Hornets 2016-17 Schedule: Top Games, Championship Odds and Record Predictions
- Updated: August 11, 2016
The Charlotte Hornets found themselves in an interesting position in the 2016 offseason. On one hand, the team was coming off a fantastic 48-34 season that saw them reach the postseason, though they lost in the first round to the Miami Heat.
For the team’s full schedule, be sure to check out NBA.com.
On the other hand, they didn’t seem anywhere close to winning an NBA title and unlikely to attract any major superstars. So for the Hornets, there seemed to be three options this offseason:
Blow up the roster and build a championship contender from scratch. Swing a few trades to change the roster balance without moving on from the team centerpieces. Maintain the status quo.
Unsurprisingly, the team chose the third option.
Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams were both re-signed, key moves for the team’s future. Al Jefferson, Courtney Lee and Jeremy Lin all departed in free agency but were replaced by Marco Belinelli, Roy Hibbert and Ramon Sessions.
The starting five will likely be Kemba Walker, Batum, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Williams and Cody Zeller. That’s a strong unit. While the departures of Jefferson, Lee and Lin certainly hurt the team’s depth—and Belinelli, Hibbert and Sessions aren’t upgrades—the Hornets didn’t dramatically alter their roster composition, and Steve Clifford won’t have to dramatically alter his philosophy to fit the new pieces.
But the Hornets will also have a slightly weaker bench and several teams in the Eastern Conference look improved. Making the postseason is no guarantee for this team, in other words.
2015-16 Details
Season Opener: Oct. 26 @ Milwaukee Bucks
Championship Odds: According to Oddsshark.com on July 14, the Hornets have 200-1 title odds.
Full Schedule: NBA.com
Top Matchups Cleveland Cavaliers
First Home Matchup: Dec. 31
All roads in the Eastern Conference run through Cleveland. And as long as LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love remain with the …
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