Moussa Diabate should never leave the Hornets' starting five

Last year, Moussa Diabate was a breakout player for the Charlotte Hornets. However, he had little to no offensive game and was undersized at center. When the Hornets drafted Ryan Kalkbrenner, a tall player who'd won defensive awards in college, many expected Diabate to transition to the bench or the four.

He did, at least initially. Diabate came off the bench, though he and Kalkbrenner were playing mostly similar minutes, and both were doing well. That rotation seemed like it would be a success, and it was for a while.

When Kalkbrenner went down, Diabate took back over, and he has arguably cemented himself as the starting center. Hornets coach Charles Lee said they'd get creative for both players, but they don't need to. Diabate is the starter.

The Hornets are 8.0 points better with Diabate on the floor, translating to 19 expected wins in a season. That's not insignificant. For comparison, here are other Hornets:

Ryan Kalkbrenner -9.9, -23 wins
LaMelo Ball +10.7, +25 wins
Kon Knueppel +2.7, +7 wins
Brandon Miller +2.4, +6 wins
Miles Bridges -8.9 points, -21 wins

Jan 10, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Moussa Diabaté (14) looks to pass around Utah Jazz center Kyle Filipowski (22) during the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Peter Creveling-Imagn Images | Peter Creveling-Imagn Images

Put simply, Diabate's been one of the best and most impactful players the Hornets have. His advanced metrics bear that out, too:

113.7 defensive rating
116.8 offensive rating
3.2 net rating
17.0 rebound percentage
64.9% true shooting

Based on how he plays with the other key Hornets, the choice is obvious, too. The starting five with Diabate has a 34.4 net rating, while replacing him with Kalkbrenner drops it to 0.9. That alone suggests he should be the starter.

They are obliterating opponents when Diabate joins LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, and Miles Bridges on the court, and none of those four is a particularly decent defender. Yet, the defensive rating as a whole is above average.

Kalkbrenner will get better with more experience, and he is still likely to be a solid role player. For now, though, he should be coming off the bench, and Diabate should be given as many minutes as possible. He's no longer a diamond in the rough. He's just a diamond.

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