{"id":698122,"date":"2026-04-04T17:19:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T17:19:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/698122\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T17:19:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T17:19:13","slug":"the-2025-hornets-draft-class-might-be-their-best-ever-and-nobody-saw-it-coming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/698122\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2025 Hornets\u2019 draft class might be their best ever and nobody saw it coming"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2025 Charlotte Hornets draft class may go down as the greatest in franchise history. When the dust settles, Charlotte could very well walk away having selected both the Rookie of the Year and the league leader in three\u2011pointers, all while adding multiple rotation\u2011ready contributors.<\/p>\n

Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Sion James have each delivered an incredible impact for a Hornets squad now sitting at 42\u201336, transforming what was once a rebuilding team into a bona fide playoff threat<\/a>. Charlotte hasn\u2019t had this level of excitement in years, with over 20 sellouts of Spectrum Center this season.<\/p>\n

If this trajectory continues, the 2025 class won\u2019t just be remembered as Charlotte\u2019s best ever; it may become one of the most impactful rookie groups the league has seen in a decade. Let\u2019s take a closer look at each rookie and the unique impact they\u2019ve made on Charlotte\u2019s evolving roster.<\/p>\n

Kon Knueppel, No. 4 overall pick<\/p>\n

Knueppel\u2019s season has been nothing short of spectacular. Here are a few of the accomplishments he\u2019s already notched:<\/p>\n

Fastest player to 100 three-pointersBroke the NBA record for rookie three-pointers madeBroke Kemba Walker\u2019s franchise record for three-pointers made in a single seasonTop 5 in true shooting percentage amongst rookies in league historyCurrent leader in the league in three-pointers made<\/p>\n

This is all without mentioning that he\u2019s the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year<\/a>. Detractors can\u2019t even find a valid reason to hate on this guy.\u00a0His shooting and off-ball impact is indisputable. Knueppel\u2019s impact speaks for itself, and the best part is he still has room to grow to become even better.<\/p>\n

Liam McNeeley, No. 29 overall pick<\/p>\n

Liam McNeeley was acquired via the Mark Williams trade with the Phoenix Suns, which in hindsight is still a win<\/a> despite McNeeley being the only rookie who hasn\u2019t provided consistent value. McNeeley has appeared in 30 games this season on 12 minutes per game, averaging 4.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.8 assists on 40\/40\/82 shooting splits.<\/p>\n

McNeeley was projected to be a two-way wing, providing depth for the roster early on. He\u2019s spent most of his development time in the G League this year, and that will be beneficial for him in the long run. McNeeley has had some solid games off the bench this year. While he hasn\u2019t been as impactful as even the second-round rookies, his rookie season doesn\u2019t solely define his success in the NBA.<\/p>\n

Sion James, No. 33 overall pick<\/p>\n

I\u2019d argue that James has been the second-most valuable rookie on the Hornets this season. He\u2019s embraced his role as a 3\u2011and\u2011D wing<\/a> with real maturity, knocking down threes at a respectable 36.5 percent clip and consistently taking on the toughest defensive assignments. On many nights, he\u2019s been their best on\u2011ball defender.<\/p>\n

When you add in the fact that he\u2019s appeared in every single game this year with four left to play, his value becomes even clearer. Availability matters, especially for a young team trying to build continuity, and James has delivered steady, reliable minutes off the bench from day one. That combination of durability, defensive impact, and efficient shooting has helped Charlotte immensely.<\/p>\n

Ryan Kalkbrenner, No. 34 overall pick\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kalkbrenner was a four-time Big East Defensive Player of the year, so Jeff Peterson had a good idea of what he was getting when he drafted him in the second-round. A solid shot-blocker who could take high-efficient shots around the rim. Kalkbrenner is just that and that\u2019s okay.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s two blocks away from reaching 100 total blocks on the season. While some matchups against stretch fives tend to give Kalkbrenner trouble, he\u2019s been a great rotational player for the Hornets, as most second-round rookies don\u2019t pan out.<\/p>\n

This draft class has already churned in a 75 percent hit rate, with 100 possible if McNeeley’s progression stays upward over the next few seasons. Almost every hole on the roster was seemingly plugged with a rookie this year. They didn\u2019t shy away from the call of duty and immediately played a vital role for this team. When all is said and done, this draft class has a good case for being the best overall in franchise history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2025 Charlotte Hornets draft class may go down as the greatest in franchise history. When the dust…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":698123,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3777],"tags":[7,684,473,3878,685,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-698122","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-charlotte-hornets","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-charlotte","10":"tag-charlotte-hornets","11":"tag-charlottehornets","12":"tag-hornets","13":"tag-nba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/698122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=698122"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/698122\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/698123"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=698122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=698122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=698122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}