Has preseason play turned the Charlotte Hornets' biggest perceived weakness into a strength?

The preseason in any professional sport is a time that is ripe for overreaction.

Although many scrimmage superstars have been exposed when real bullets start flying, we as a society have yet to learn our lesson. The Charlotte Hornets, 2-3 in preseason play, have begun to peddle hope for their most ardent supporters.

Back-to-back victories over teams with legitimate playoff aspirations, the Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies (who rolled out their B+ squad), revealed a higher-than-once-thought ceiling for the professional basketball outfit in the Queen City.

The catalyst behind the raised ceiling are two young players who are fighting for a starting nod, and in doing so, decimating Charlotte's opposition: Moussa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner.

Charlotte's center rotation is punching above their weight

No team in the NBA has spent less capital on their center rotation than the Hornets. Gone are first-round pick Mark Williams and the overpaid Jusuf Nurkic who soaked up minutes last season, in are Kalkbrenner (a second-round pick) and Diabate (a fourth-year veteran making $2.2 million in 2025-26) who are making pennies on the dollar compared to their predecessors.

The center duo has been a revelation in the preseason.

At this point, Moussa Diabate is a known entity. The undersized, fully-caffeinated center is a two-way menace. The amount of growth Diabate has made on offense is a true feather in the cap of Charles Lee and the Hornets' developmental staff.

Last season, Diabate was predominantly just an offensive rebounding machine, racking up points and boards by cleaning up his teammates misses. He flashed a bit of rudimentary passing skill and a fledgling face-up game, but nothing that kept a defense up at night.

In the preseason, he's clearly made a step in developing some of those on-ball skills.

The Knicks throw two players to the ball on this hedge, and Moussa Diabaté makes them pay on the back end. He should be in these positions a lot, and he calmly euros his way to the hoop. pic.twitter.com/QhVMs9BJdx
— Richie (@richierandall) October 18, 2025

He wasn't making this play, this smoothly, last year. Diabate is known around the Hornets' organization as being a tireless worker, and the preseason has revealed the fruits of his labor.

Not only does he have a sneaky deep bag in the restricted area (including the above euro step and a Tasmanian devil-like spin move), he can also be counted on to make the correct reads as a passer in the short roll.

Hornets love this Stack Out 77 action.

It leads to the first bucket of the game for Charlotte. Nice pocket pass from Mann, and the kickout from Diabaté to LaMelo. pic.twitter.com/mzuc1aXbOg
— Richie (@richierandall) October 10, 2025

His development as an offensive player has made the headlines in the preseason, but it's his defensive versatility that will impact games for a Charlotte outfit that projects to struggle on that end.

Moussa has shown some real versatility as a defender in the lead up to regular season play. His wiry frame and solid lateral athleticism allow him meet screening actions at the level before switching onto guards and holding his own on the perimeter. Check out this ridiculous defensive possession against All-NBA guard Jalen Brunson.

Come on now, Moussa.

*whispers*

are we sure the Hornets center rotation is a major weakness? pic.twitter.com/KVLyEj7p7u
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) October 18, 2025

And another where he plays drop coverage and erases a shot at the rim.

Possessions like this give me hope that Moussa Diabate can anchor Charlotte’s defense for stretches.

Great job stalling the initial action and cleaning up for a teammates mistake at the rim.

He’ll struggle against traditional bigs, but he played well against OKC’s style pic.twitter.com/aHo769oulx
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) October 7, 2025

They play completely different styles, but Diabate and his front court mate Ryan Kalkbrenner complement each other well.

While Diabate is a more modern, athletic, switchable big, Kalkbrenner swallows opposing offenses up as a more traditional option.

The value of Ryan Kalkbrenner in 20 seconds.

Charlotte blows a switch, but RK’s presence as a shot blocker forces Brunson to make an awkward pass.

Then he finishes a play from the dunker spot on the other end. pic.twitter.com/o48Y0nIDnO
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) October 18, 2025

Although Kalkbrenner was destined for early action with the senior Hornets when Charlotte selected him with an early-second round pick, it was hard to imagine how successful he would be from jump street.

After struggling against the Oklahoma City in the preseason opener, Kalkbrenner has looked like he belongs on the floor this preseason.

An old rookie at 23-years-old, the four-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year patrols the paint with veteran-savvy. Kalkbrenner is rarely out of position, and even when he makes the rare mistake, he still has quick enough feet and a long enough wingspan to erase or alter opposing shots.

On offense, he does the little things with excellence. Sealing guards, sliding into pockets of space to make himself an outlet when a guard touches the paint, putting back offensive rebounds, tipping balls out when he can't secure the board himself. He's not perfect, but he's proven to be a solid, reliable option at a real position of need for Charlotte.

Here's where we pump the brakes. Remember, it's just the preseason. Starting next week, Diabate and Kalkbrenner will play 48 minutes against nothing but NBA-caliber big men, and we'll get a true read on their long-term potential.

However, it's fair to dream about the potential of this duo in Charlotte. That's what the preseason is for, right?

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