Play-In Disappointment Should Make the Charlotte Hornets' Offseason Plans Crystal Clear

Grant Williams summarized the Charlotte Hornets' late-season loss to the Detroit Pistons in three simple words. "...they punked us."

That result, plus the drubbing Charlotte received at the hands of the Orlando Magic in the Play-In Tournament, should make their offseason plans pretty clear. Let's take a look at three things the Hornets should look to do to improve on the 44-38 season that ended in disappointing fashion.

1. Don't Overract to One Result

Aaron Rodgers said it best: R-E-L-A-X.

After the Hornets fell to the Magic on Friday night, league-wide analysts took to social media and pointed to LaMelo Ball as the reason Charlotte ultimately fell short of the playoffs for the 10th straight season. Those who watched the team all season long know that the Hornets wouldn't have even had the chance to advance out of the Play-In Tournament if it wasn't for Ball's second half surge.

Ball's talent at the guard position pairs perfectly with the burgeoning skill sets of Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel, blessing the Hornets with an old school big three to continue building around. In 1783 minutes with those three players on the floor, Charlotte outscored their opponents by 18.8 points per 100 possessions with a 132.6 offensive rating that was in the 100th percentile per Cleaning the Glass.

There is plenty of room on the margins for Jeff Peterson to tweak his roster, but now is not the time to mess with the top end talent, no matter what the Twitter GMs have to say.

2. Embrace Physicality

Charles Lee couldn't have said it more planly on the morning after the team's playoff elimination: "We need to find out how we have the physical toughness, which is a lot of weight room. I think some of it is the mental execution how best to combat it."

All of Charlotte's starters, the group who proved themselves to be one of the best five-man units in the NBA, echoed the sentiment of their head coach.

The first way to become more physical starts this week. When the Hornets' coaching staff has their end-of-season player development meetings with all 18 rostered players, a regimented plan to bulk up and increase the team's physicality across the board will likely be included in the discussion. Charles Lee called the team's propensity to get bullied by bigger, stronger teams a 'global theme,' giving me confidence that a plan to rectify it is already in place.

The other way to change the team's physical makeup comes through offseason transatcions. In the draft, free agency, or the trade market, expect Jeff Peterson to target players that can hold up to the rigors of playoff basketball. With Charlotte's point guard, shooting guard, and small forward already in place, those upgrades will have to come in the front court.

Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate were two drivers of the Hornets' success, but they were both exposed by teams with bulkier front courts like Orlando and Detroit. There is a role for both of them on a great team, but their lack of positional size will make it difficult for them to continue in their current roles in the long-term.

A potential target in a trade or free agency scenario? Oklahoma City's Isaiah Hartenstein (Hartenstein's contract has a club option for 2026-27) — a bruising big man with a championship ring who would fit nicely into Charlotte's fast-paced half court offense that relies on its centers to create space with crushing screens.

3. Mirror What Wins

The Indiana Pacers' magical run to the 2025 NBA Finals inspired teams across the league to tweak their style of play.

Rick Carlisle's movement-heavy, pass-centric blur of a half court offense became the en vogue style this year, and Charlotte's own Charles Lee admitted in the preseason that he drew inspiration from Indiana when revamping the Hornets' offensive attack ahead of the 2026 season.

"The thing that's really cool about that Indiana team is the ball movement. I think that the ability to make everybody a threat on the floor is really important, no matter if they're an All-Star or a role player. When you play with that type of pace and speed and willingness to pass the ball, you make everybody a threat and it's hard to guard."

The game of basketball is ever-changing as teams look to exploit every advantage in their goal to perfect an imperfect science. A team will insert a wrinkle into their play style or scheme that leeds to a deep run in this year's playoffs that other franchises will copy going into 2026-27.

There's no sense in reinventing the wheel, and if a new META develops over the next few weeks, don't be surprised to see Charlotte's innovative staff implement it as soon as next season.

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