Hornets Ownership: 'We’re Not There Yet' After Big Leap Forward

When Michael Jordan put up his majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets for sale, fans were hoping that this would be the start of a new chapter, and one that would usher in competitive basketball and ultimately a team that could compete for championships.

Every time a new owner, coach, or GM is introduced to a team, they hit the press conference out of the park and get the majority of the fan base believing that something great is on the way.

Sure, that feeling existed for some Hornets fans, but I think it's safe to say many felt like no matter who bought the team, it would just be a continuation of what has been a miserable era of basketball since the team returned to the Queen City.

The duo of Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin made sure they delivered on their promise as soon as possible, showing a level of commitment by building a state-of-the-art practice center that would be considered among the best in the league, if not the best.

They've done a number of other things to improve the fan experience and help put the organization in the best possible spot moving forward. Seeing the team take a giant step this past season is something that fuels that motivation to ultimately become the "premier franchise of the NBA."

"I think we're always feeling pressure in the sense of we have really high expectations," said Hornets Co-Chairman Gabe Plotkin. "One of the great things we've learned this year, we had a great draft, and you saw the impact that had. You saw a togetherness and teamwork. I think our staff, which we've always felt great about, even the year before, when it may not have shown up in terms of wins and losses, but it was meaningful. So to know the foundation that we have built and how that translated already in terms of wins. I was reading today, our net margin differential from year over year was the most ever in the history of the NBA. So not only were the wins 25 more wins, but this team went from losing games by a lot of points to winning games by a lot of points. That's a great sign of what's to come, but it means the foundation is set. There's always pressure. We have high expectations, and we're not there yet."

It didn't take long for the Hornets to completely overhaul the operation of the organization as Plotkin and Schnall moved on from Steve Clifford shortly after their arrival, Mitch Kupchak stepped down as President of Basketball Ops, and slid into an advisor role. They were replaced by Charles Lee and Jeff Peterson, who have been in lockstep with one another since Lee arrived two summers ago.

Building a winner doesn't happen overnight, although in some ways, it felt like that was the case for Charlotte. But the reality is, they still have a ton of work to do before they can be a perennial contender in the Eastern Conference.

"Yeah, I mean, I think where we are is kind of where we ended in a sense," Plotkin said of where the team is. "Like, you know, we've gone from, you know, kind of a forgotten team, with not a clear path and culture, to a team with a really strong foundation, to a team that, you know, won 44 games, but also didn't actually make the playoffs. And so, you know, we're one of the youngest teams in the league. We have a ton of picks, and it's our job to kind of figure out how we go from here to take it to that next level. The minute the season ends, you feel bad for a day or two, and also really good in many respects. But then it's like, how do we continue to get better? And that's really what our focus is."

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