Welcome to the first edition of the Charlotte Hornets On SI Monday morning mailbag. Every week of the NBA season we'll be diving into questions provided by you, the loyal readers, on X.

Let's dive in.

Questions edited for clarity and brevity.

What is the answer moving forward to counteract physicality? Is it as simple as Coby White and Kon Knueppel coming back? Or is it overall roster construction?

Great question, Crawford.

On some level, the Hornets did add physicality this offseason after the franchise spent the days following the Play-In loss in Orlando lamenting their lack of it. Both Naz Reid and Grayson Allen (yes, Grayson Allen) are comfortable playing through contact off the bounce.

I also think Coby White and Kon Knueppel's steady ball-handling and sgravity would have helped against the Hawks on Friday night, and will help when Charlotte faces teams like Detroit, Oklahoma City, and Boston. Anything would have been better than what we watched, right?

The Hornets have effectively been starting three non-shooters in Dennis Schröder (who, to his credit, got red hot from deep in the win against Miami), Sion James (who's jumper I do expect to come around), and Moussa Diabate. That squeezes driving and passing lanes, which accentuated the strength that is Atlanta's fiesty perimeter defense.

Losing by 40+ is never a good look, but I can't say I'm surprised that it happened against a team like Atlanta who is perfectly crafted to eat short-handed back courts like the Hornets' alive.

However, as a whole, this team does still lack some punch on the wings and in the back court.

Brandon Miller answered the call against Miami, but nobody is going to confuse him with a bruising downhill forward. Sion James is a bulldog on defense, but his handle prevents him from piercing the paint on offense with a level of consistency. Royce O'Neale is an awesome connective role player, but he's too perimeter-oriented to be considered a fix to an issue that has plagued Charlotte time and again over the last calendar year.

The ultimate answer to Charlotte's issues with physicality isn't on the roster. I have no clue which established star Jeff Peterson and company are targeting with their cache of assets, but in my opinion, it has to be a bigger-bodied wing or forward who can break down defenses like Atlanta's off the dribble.

Do the hornets need to cut Kylan Boswell and sign a more experienced point guard in that 3rd two-way spot to hold them over?

This question was asked when Christian Anderson Jr.'s availability for Saturday night was in question, but it's still worth discussing.

The problem is that 'experienced PG' and 'two-way spot' is an oxymoron. Players are only eligible for a two-way contract if they have accumulated 3 or fewer years of NBA service time, making that player pool inherently inexperienced.

If either Coby White or Kylan Boswell are still liable to miss multiple weeks, it's worth exploring the two-way market for a point guard who can impact the Hornets right now because it looks like Christian Anderson Jr. just isn't ready to handle high-leverage minutes at this moment.

KJ Simpson, anyone?

There's precedence for a Jeff Peterson-led front office making a marginal move like this relatively early in the season. In late December of 2025, the Hornets lost Ryan Kalkbrenner and Mason Plumlee for an extended period of time, and their remedy for an ailing center room was PJ Hall, who was signed after the team cut Drew Peterson from a two-way contract.

I don't think the Hornets need to move on from Kylan Boswell quite yet, but another injury to the back court (like the one we thought Christian Anderson Jr. suffered on Friday) could force their hand.

How has the transition for Naz Reid been so seamless?

Naz Reid has long been a player who's numbers look starter-worthy when examined through a per 36 lens. Most players who win a Sixth Man of the Year award, save for a particular archetype of scoring guard who is born to impact games off the bench, posses the ability to blossom in an expanded role in a different context.

Reid is exactly that, and he's been exactly what the Hornets have needed.

I sound like a broken record here, but it's his versatility that has shined.

Reid is the rare big man who can do a little bit of everything. He can put the ball on the floor and drive it to eventually shoot or pass. He can run through staggered off-ball screens and shoot jumpers on the move. He can post up and exploit a mismatch. He can catch the ball in space and make a quick-decision that extends an advantage.

He's a natural front court pair for both Ryan Kalkbrenner and Moussa Diabate due to his ability to space the floor, and I believe that once we get through ~20 games of the season, Reid will be a key contributor in the majority of Charlotte's most-effective lineup combinations due to his well-rounded offensive skill set.

What do Liam and PJ need to do to see the court?

Unless the Hornets suffer a rash of injuries in their front court, PJ Hall doesn't have a clear path to playing time.

The same can be said for Liam McNeeley, especially once Knueppel and White make their long-awaited returns.

McNeeley is the more interesting case to me, though. It feels like the Hornets are grooming him to be more than just a connective wing who provides the majority of his value from spacing the floor. At every turn, from the G-League, to the Summer League, to the preseason, Charlotte has put the ball in McNeeley's hands hoping that he will develop into a jumbo ball handler that can great advantages off the bounce.

That has happened in flashes, but it's been far too inconsistent for Charles Lee to attempt it in a meaningful regular season game.

So to answer the question: further development on-ball, and improvements (specifically with attention to detail) on the defensive end of the floor. McNeeley gave up multiple open shots in the three minutes he played in the season-opener at Brooklyn. That cannot happen for a young player who is still fighting to earn a spot in an NBA rotation.

What do we have to do to get more Hornets fans into these games? Is it as simple as just win?

Put a transplant ban on the city of Charlotte? Kidding. Much to the chagrin of some of you, I myself am a transplant from up north (which explains my occasional sad boy tweets about the Yankees throughout the summer).

Home fan attendance has been a problem for both professional sports franchises in the Queen City. How many times has Bank of America Stadium been overran by opposing fans from big markets across the country?

I do think the answer is as simple as this: just win, baby.

When the Hornets hosted the Heat in the Play-In Tournament, the franchise's first postseason game in Charlotte in a decade, there was a smattering of Miami fans in the Spectrum Center, not the army that usually invades the Hornets' friendly confines.

The Spectrum Center was covered in purple and teal at the end of the 2026 when the home team had the city buzzing. Winning really does cure all.