Where do the Charlotte Hornets Rank Amongst the League's Best Young Cores?

"The best young core in basketball" changes nearly every year.

New draft picks come in, players get older, and some young players do not pan out the way people think they will. Take the Memphis Grizzlies, for example, who just a few years ago were the two-seed in the West and looked like a future NBA champion.

Just three years later, the Grizzlies have blown up their roster and are headed towards a full-fledged rebuild, with former All-Star Ja Morant's future with the team still in question.

For the previous few years, the Oklahoma City Thunder have, without a doubt, the best young core in the NBA. Two of their three best players, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, are just 24 and 23 years old, and are the favorites to be the first team since the Kevin Durant Golden State Warriors to win back-to-back titles.

Then there are the San Antonio Spurs, who have MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama, last season's Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle, this season's #2 overall pick Dylan Harper, Devin Vassell, and the 14th overall pick in Carter Bryant.

Who can forget the Detroit Pistons as well?

After tying an NBA-record 28 straight losses just two seasons ago, the Pistons hold the best record in basketball at the All-Star Break. They are led by an MVP candidate in Cade Cunningham, as well as All-Star Jalen Duren, and two former top-five picks in Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland.

This is, without a doubt the top three young cores in the NBA right now.

Who sits at four?

Charlotte Hornets

Let's talk about the Charlotte Hornets, who have won ten of their last eleven games leading into the All-Star break.

They have the seventh-youngest team in basketball by average age (trailing the OKC Thunder, which just makes what they are doing even more impressive and terrifying), and their top four players this season are 24 (LaMelo Ball), 24 (Moussa Diabaté), 23 (Brandon Miller), and 20 (Kon Knueppel).

Ball has quietly taken a leap this season and has looked like the franchise player after non-stop trade discussions over the offseason. After sitting out for thirteen days in November with an ankle injury, and with the team properly managing his minutes, LaMelo is on pace to play his most games in a single-season since 2021-22.

While his counting stats tell differently, LaMelo is 37th in the NBA in DARKO and 33rd in LEBRON, pointing to a franchise-level star for the Hornets after years of debate.

With LaMelo's scoring numbers down, Brandon Miller has taken a scoring leap since the start of the 2026 calendar year, averaging 20.6 points on the year and shooting 42.5% from the field and 36.6% from three. Miller's advanced numbers are not as flashy as LaMelo's, but after a slow start to his season the former second overall pick has started to look like he has taken an All-Star leap.

Kon Knueppel has helped change the formula for the Hornets. Those who did not watch much of Duke basketball believed the Hornets would be getting an unathletic, spot-up shooter who may have a high-floor, but not a high-ceiling.

Boy, were they wrong.

Knueppel has been neck-and-neck with former Duke roommate Cooper Flagg for the NBA's Rookie of the Year race, averaging 18.9 points a night while shooting 43.1% from three on 7.9 attempts a night. Kon has looked like a future All-Star since the season began in October, and his three-point numbers already point to someone who could chase Charlotte's own Steph Curry in some records.

Entering the 2025-26 season, the Hornets' center position was up for debate as some fans believed they lacked at the position. Second-round pick Ryan Kalkbrenner received the starting nod for around the first two months of the season, before the numbers of the team with Moussa Diabaté in the starting lineup began to pile up.

Like LaMelo Ball, Moussa's impact is reflected more in his advanced stats than his counting stats. He's 22nd in the NBA in RAPM and 57th in LEBRON. He's one of the league's premier offensive-rebounders, seventh in the league in offensive-rebounds per game, sixth in contested offensive-rebounds, and first in offensive-rebound chances.

His offensive rebounding has almost single-handedly changed the complexion of the Hornets' season. It's that good.

Outside of these four, the Hornets still have a plethora of young talent. Last season's first-round pick, Tidjane Salaün, has looked much improved this season and is still just 20 years old. They have three other draft picks this season outside of Knueppel, with Sion James (23), Ryan Kalkbrenner (24), and Liam McNeeley (20) all showing flashes of being good role players this season. Even Josh Green, who will be extension eligible this offseason and is in his second season with the team after being traded to Charlotte last offseason, is only 25.

Finally, there is the head coach and the President of Basketball Operations.

Charles Lee is the sixth youngest head coach in the NBA, and has led the Hornets to the best record, fifth best net rating, sixth best defensive rating, and second best offensive rating over the last fifteen games. While health matters and has played a large part in why they are winning at this rate, Lee's system has made sure they continue to win recently, no matter who is in the lineup.

Jeff Peterson is younger than Charles Lee, and the roster has excelled because of him. After taking the reins in 2024, Peterson has helped construct the Hornets from one of the worst rosters in the NBA to one of the most promising.

He's also tacked on loads of draft capital, with eleven first-round picks over the next five years, and fourteen second-round picks during that timeframe.