What to Watch For When the Charlotte Hornets Open Their Preseason Campaign Against the Brooklyn Nets

Welcome back, Charlotte.

The Hornets are hours away from tipping off their 2026-27 preseason campaign against the Brooklyn Nets, and although the game doesn't count in the standings and Charlotte will be missing a handful of key players, this game does carry some weight.

Our staff at Charlotte Hornets On SI is here to tell you what we'll be looking for when the game tips off this evening.

Zachary Roberts - Point Guard Usage

The Hornets need to figure out how best to allot the point guard minutes. How much does Dennis Schröder have in the tank? What are they going to get from Christian Anderson Jr.? Who else factors in? Coby White likely won't play in the preseason, so this will be an important time to see how the Hornets can address one of their biggest issues.

Evan Campos - Hannes Steinbach's Position

Charlotte's newest lottery pick played the majority of his minutes at power forward during his lone season at Washington and excelled in that role. With Grant Williams out for the preseason, Steinbach would logically fit into that backup four spot. So, it will be interesting to see whether the Hornets experiment with double-big lineups and how they utilize him on both ends. In particular, whether the coaching staff trusts him as a backline defender at the five or prefers him defensively at the four will be worth watching.

Schuyler Callihan - Physicality

Obviously, it's just a preseason game, so it's not going to give us a great read on where they are in this area of the game, but it was very clearly the No. 1 issue for the Hornets last season, and it was evident long before they got bullied in the Play-In by Orlando. Moussa Diabaté looks stronger, but is he? Does Naz Reid help in this regard? Are the guards more successful in playing through physicality and putting pressure on the rim? If these things show up, I might be buying a little more stock in this team.

Owen Watterson - Christian Anderson Jr.'s Handle

I give Christian Anderson Jr. A ton of credit: When the shot wasn't falling during Summer League, he got himself involved in so many other areas of the game. He got after it defensively, even despite some of his issues navigating ball screens on the defensive side. While Anderson Jr. even shook a player in a later Summer League game, that's not the “how does it look” that I'm looking for for.

The 18th overall pick was spectacular operating the screen and roll at Texas Tech, showed he could manipulate defenders with his eyes while he was on-ball, and clearly demonstrates ability to find rollers/divers to the basket with pocket passes — on, or off the bounce. There were only a few glimpse of that part of Anderson Jr.’s handle displayed in Summer League as he was more comfortable in later games.

I'd love to see that grow tonight, and see Anderson Jr.’s handle get him to places offensively tonight that allow the rookie PG to best effect the game. Less back to the basket to protect the ball, less fighting physically to keep tenacious defender hands away from your handle. I truly think he could show tangible progress in that arena throughout this preseason, and it's one of the main things I'm looking out for tonight, as a whole.

Matt Alquiza - Naz Reid

The Hornets are expecting big things from the former Sixth Man of the Year, and their first chance to get a glimpse at his potential against non-purple and teal colored laundry will come tonight against Brooklyn.

Versatility is the name of Naz Reid's game, and I'll be watching for how creative Charles Lee gets with creating looks for the former Sixth Man of the Year tonight. Will he initiate offense early in the clock? Will he run pick-and-rolls as a ball handler? How will he look on defense?

I have so many questions about Naz's role in Charlotte that won't all get answered against the Nets, but I'm looking forward to consuming the bread crumbs that get scattered in an otherwise meaningless preseason game.

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