Hornets get swindled in lottery sim, still land good prospect in mock draft

In less than a week, the Charlotte Hornets will know exactly where they're picking.

The lottery could place them anywhere from first overall to seventh overall, which would be a nightmare. After a 19-win season, the Hornets could stand to add someone exceptional to their roster, and this year, that requires a top-three pick.

Unfortunately, in one mock draft and lottery simulation, the Hornets didn't get that. They fell to sixth, which is one spot higher than the worst-case scenario. They can fall as low as seventh. Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman did the simulation and the mock draft that ensued, giving them Tre Johnson from Texas.

Per Wasserman, scouts say the Texas shooting guard, whose pro comparison is Tyler Herro, will be in the mix for a top-five selection because of the eye-test on his self-creation and shotmaking. He looks the part of a game-changing prospect, and that's what the Hornets need.

Positionally, he would work well. Wasserman accurately noted that the Texas guard would go right between LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, giving them a young, solid trio to top their lineup. He also noted that the team needs a shooter like Johnson after they tried and failed to get Dalton Knecht at the trade deadline.

Texas Longhorns guard Tre Johnson (20) looks to pass during their second round game of the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, March 13, 2025. | Nicole Hester / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"Regardless of positional fit, Johnson has built a best-player-available case anywhere outside the top three or four," Wasserman said. "And the Hornets, whose cornerstone, injury-prone point guard has averaged 46.2 games played since 2020-21, will want to continue focusing prioritizing talent/upside."

The Hornets would love to, at the very least, stay top three as their record indicates, but the lottery might have other plans. It often does, especially where Charlotte is concerned. They rarely get any sort of luck, so a slide to six would not be a surprise at all.

The other two picks they have, which are 33 and 34 and immune to any lottery tomfoolery, are in the second round. With those picks, Wasserman gave the Hornets center Johni Broome from Auburn and Arkansas small forward Adou Thiero.

In this simulation, the Hornets, naturally, missed out on Cooper Flagg. They also lost out on Ace Bailey, Dylan Harper, VJ Edgecombe, and Jeremiah Fears.

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