Forecasting the Hornets' realistic, disappointing, and dream outcomes for 2025-26

The Charlotte Hornets' regular season begins on Wednesday night, which means time is running out to make final predictions about Charlotte's 2025-26 campaign.

With that in mind, let's envision three different outcomes for the Hornets this year. What could their realistic, disappointing, and dream seasons, respectively, end up looking like?

Might as well get the bad news out of the way first.

What a disappointing Hornets season would look like

Ingredients: 25 wins or less, injuries to LaMelo Ball or Brandon Miller, limited production from rookie class

Charlotte failing to markedly improve on its win total from last season (21) would be a big disappointment, mostly because the club's two stars, LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, are a year older and healthy.

Speaking of health, if either Melo or Miller miss significant time in 2025-26, that will also be a huge downer. Melo getting hurt again for an extended period wouldn't allow him to prove his haters wrong; in fact, it would strengthen their argument that he simply can't stay on the floor.

A major injury to Miller would mean that he's only been healthy during his rookie season through his first three years -- this would be awful for his development.

Obviously, any player getting hurt isn't a good outcome for the Hornets, but injuries to either Melo or Miller would be particularly hard to swallow for fans.

Another bad outcome for Charlotte would be if none of its rookies fulfill expectations. Kon Knueppel has the highest mark to reach in that regard, but fans are expecting something from Ryan Kalkbrenner, too, and even a little bit of a bench spark from Liam McNeeley, provided he gets minutes.

What a realistic Hornets season would look like

Ingredients: 28-32 wins, Collin Sexton thrives, inability to win close games, limited injuries, entertainment factor high

The addition of Collin Sexton should make the Hornets a better team, even if he's only going to be around for one season. That being said, Sexton doesn't move the need that much. Charlotte won't suddenly be a Play-In team due to his presence.

The same thing can be said about the impact that Knueppel is expected to have in year one. Charlotte has a ton of young talent, but their lack of experience won't allow them to get over the hump in close games against superior competition.

If the Hornets can avoid major injuries to their star duo, they should be competitive in most games (and highly entertaining), even if they end up losing most of the time.

What a dream Hornets season would look like

Ingredients: 35-40 wins, flirt with Play-In berth, zero major injuries, multiple rookies produce, Melo and/or Miller make All-Star team, Tre Mann takes leap

The most important thing for Charlotte is that everyone stays healthy. If that happens, here's what a Hornets team firing on all cylinders and surprising the NBA would look like: LaMelo and Brandon Miller playing at an All-Star level; Knueppel, Kalkbrenner, and McNeeley impacting wins on a nightly basis; and Tre Mann playing like a Sixth Man of the Year.

It goes without saying that Sexton and Miles Bridges would also be balling (and healthy). It's not an impossible dream, but a lot of things would have to go right for the Hornets for them to even sniff the Play-In.

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