Hornets GM Mitch Kupchak Sets Expectations for Upcoming Season

The start of the regular season is finally here and the Charlotte Hornets are feeling good about where they stand in the Eastern Conference picture after the 2022-23 season was decimated by injuries.

When the Hornets hit the offseason in 2022, GM Mitch Kupchak felt like the playoffs were in reach for the team, however, he didn't foresee the laundry list of injuries or the off-court trouble involving Miles Bridges taking place. Both factors played a big part in Charlotte's downfall but it did net them the No. 2 overall pick in the draft which they used on Brandon Miller.

Now that many of the team's key contributors are healthy, there is a strong belief in the organization that this season will mark the end of the postseason drought that dates back to 2015.

Kupchak recently joined Hornets radio play-by-play man, Sam Farber, to discuss the upcoming season and his expectations for the team.

"They're young but they're not all young. Gordon (Hayward) and Terry (Rozier) and Cody Martin, believe it or not, has been around for a bunch of years now, so we liked the group during the offseason and we didn't see a need to make major moves. Knock on wood we stay healthy. We still got a couple guys that get injured, but I think we like the group we have. We won 43 games two years ago. I think we're a better team now than we were two years ago. Now, I don't know about the rest of the Eastern Conference, but I'd like to think we'd be in the hunt for something. I think we're a better team, at least on paper."

I wholeheartedly agree with Kupchak here. As I stated in my record prediction for the season, my only concerns with this team are depth and health. If they can manage to stay relatively healthy, there's no reason why this team can't be in the top half of the Eastern Conference.

"We've been trying to build something that's sustainable," Kupchak stated. "What does that mean? Well, let's get better and better every year. Don't mortgage the future. Don't make a deal just to get into the playoffs and then once you get in the playoffs maybe you lose and you look back on it and say well, we gave up an asset or two or we got a bad contract now and we're still not much better than we really were. This group has a good mix of youth and veteran talent and yeah, I think the playoffs is a realistic goal for us. And why not? Two years ago we won 43 games, so with what I think is a better team, why shouldn't we be a better team this year? I think we're in a good spot. I'm not so much worried about getting a lot of picks right now and adding to this team via picks. It's always good to have picks because it helps you make a deal. You can't be too young. You can't just keep on bringing young players into the building. At some point, you got to produce and I think we're in a position to produce."

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