The Charlotte Hornets aren't at full strength, not even close. Any attempt to judge the starting five currently is foolish, because 40% of the starters are hurt, and both fill crucial roles for this unit.

But we have seen what the players look like, and we know what this starting five will be like once Coby White and Kon Knueppel get healthy again. This is assuming the other three spots remain the same, and there's no reason to think anyone's getting swapped out any time soon.

But even still, the lineup of Coby White, Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Naz Reid, and Moussa Diabaté is at risk of not living up to our hopes and dreams. The starting five last year was historically good, and we're not going to see that sort of production again.

Losing LaMelo Ball stings, but adding Naz Reid in place of Miles Bridges is a pretty substantial upgrade. One would think that this lineup is a little better overall because White's a good player and Reid vastly improves the power forward spot.

Yet, they're ranked 23rd in Bleacher Report's ranking from Zach Buckley. "This ranking is placing a slight wager on some internal growth, but this lineup isn't lacking for potential improvers. Knueppel had a historic shooting run as a rookie, Miller can look the part of a star big wing (the most coveted archetype in basketball) and Reid could really blossom with more of a featured role than he filled in Minnesota," he wrote.

That's a lot of question marks, and there isn't a unifying force at the top tying everything together. The splits with White last year were very good in a small sample size, but we all know he is not the facilitator Ball was, nor does he possess the gravity that Ball did.

So, without that aspect of the offense, the ceiling will be defined by whether or not each player can improve. Can Brandon Miller make the leap? After one game, that looks very difficult for him. Will Kon Knueppel be as effective from deep without open looks or the spacing he enjoyed last year? TBD.

Is Naz Reid going to be much better with more usage? So far, that's mostly true. But unless the answer to all three questions ends up being yes, then this starting five will still be lacking. It won't be bad, but it won't be what we grew accustomed to in 2025-26.