What kind of players can the Hornets land with two first-round NBA Draft picks?
As the NBA Draft nears, signaling the official start of the league’s next phase, keep those 16 words that rolled off the tongue of Jeff Peterson in mind.
“It’s, if not the deepest,” the Charlotte Hornets president of basketball operations said at his end-of-season press conference, “one of the deepest that I’ve ever been a part of.”
That’s been the consensus for months now, which should be a good thing for Peterson and the Hornets as they retool their roster after missing out on the playoffs yet again, keeping the NBA’s longest current postseason drought at a decade and counting.
With Charlotte armed with pick Nos. 14 and No. 18 — the latter coming via the Phoenix Suns courtesy of the 2025 Jusuf Nurkic trade to Charlotte — the Hornets have myriad options and several directions they can go should they elect to use both picks.
To better understand the value of those particular slots in the NBA’s annual event, the Charlotte Observer looked at the talent taken with the 14th and 18th selections during the past 10 drafts.
2025
No. 14
San Antonio Spurs: Carter Bryant, F, Arizona
Career stats: Averaging 4.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 71 regular-season appearances
Perhaps known more for his jumping skills, given he finished in second place with a score of 93 in the slam dunk contest at All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, he got in some extra fine-tuning during his rookie season with the San Antonio’s G League affiliate. With the Spurs, he garnered about 11 minutes of action per game in his initial pro campaign.
No. 18
Washington Wizards: Walter Clayton, Jr., G, Florida
Career stats: Averaging seven points, two rebounds and four assists in 69 regular-season appearances
Immediately sent to Utah in a draft-night deal, he got traded again prior to the NBA deadline in February. He was flipped to Memphis in a multi-player deal centered around Jaren Jackson Jr. His numbers increased playing for the Grizzlies, highlighted by the 9.7 points and 5.7 assists he racked up in his 24 outings that included six starts.
2024
No. 14
Portland Trail Blazers: Bub Carrington, G, Pittsburgh
Career stats: Averaging 10.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 163 regular-season appearances
Traded to Washington after being selected by Portland, he’s been solid in his initial two seasons. He logged action in all 82 games during both his rookie and second year, becoming the first player to do so since Karl-Anthony Towns, and was a second-team all-rookie selection.
No. 18
Orlando Magic Tristan Da Silva, F, Colorado
Career stats: Averaging 8.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 151 regular-season appearances
In fewer than two seasons, he’s established himself as an important piece for Orlando. His ability to guard multiple positions along with his penchant for shooting and knack for being a slasher at times and cutting to the basket can make him a tough cover.
2023
No. 14
New Orleans Pelicans: Jordan Hawkins, G, Connecticut
Career stats: Averaging eight points, 2.3 rebounds and one assist in 174 regular-season appearances
After playing in 67 games and averaging 7.8 points and 2.2 rebounds during his rookie season and taking a leap to post 10.8 points in Year 2, he had to scrap more for minutes in 2025-26. He only made one start in 51 games, by far the fewest since entering the league.
No. 18
Miami Heat: Jaime Jaquez, Jr., F, UCLA
Career stats: Averaging 12.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 216 regular-season appearances
He burst onto the scene and hasn’t looked back, contributing 11.9 points and 3.8 rebounds in 75 games during his debut season. He earned all-rookie first-team honors and finished fourth overall in rookie of the year voting, spurring him into becoming one of Miami’s building blocks.
2022
No. 14
Golden State Warriors: Ochai Agbaji, G, Kansas
Career stats: Averaging 7.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 263 regular-season appearances
He’s bounced around a bit, already suiting up for four organizations. He didn’t spend more than a year at his initial two stops in Cleveland (2022–2023) and Utah. His best performances came with Toronto Raptors from 2024–2026), when he started 45 games and averaged career highs in points (10.4) and (3.8) rebounds per game, and is currently with the Brooklyn Nets.
No. 18
Chicago Bulls: Dalen Terry, G, Arizona
Career stats: Averaging 3.5 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 218 regular-season appearances
Finding a long-term home recently hasn’t been easy. After playing for Chicago for three seasons, he was traded to the New York Knicks and subsequently traded to the New Orleans Pelicans on the same day before being waived. He inked a two-way contract with Philadelphia 76ers this past season.
2021
No. 14
Golden State Warriors: Moses Moody, G, Arkansas
Career stats: Averaging 12.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 315 regular-season appearances
It took him a couple of seasons to settle in, but he’s really come on in the past two years. After playing in 74 games — starting in 34 — and averaging 9.8 points and 2.6 rebounds in 2024-25, he was a big-time contributor for Golden State in 2025-26, starting in 49 of 60 games and putting up career-bests in points (12.1), rebounds (3.3), and steals (1.0) prior to suffering a left patellar tendon tear that ended his season.
No. 18
Dallas Mavericks: Tre Mann, G, Florida
Career stats: Averaging 8.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 234 regular-season appearances
Here’s someone Hornets’ fans know all about. He’s had an up-and-down career in Charlotte, sandwiched in between missing the bulk of the 2024-25 season with a back injury. After being a priority re-signing last summer, he fell out of the rotation early in 2025-26 and never came close to getting back into it. He reiterated he still wants to be with the Hornets and vowed to work on things in the offseason for a better showing next season.
2020
No. 14
Boston Celtics: Aaron Nesmith, F, Vanderbilt
Career stats: Averaging 13.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 333 regular-season appearances
After two seasons with Boston, helping the Celtics reach the NBA Finals in 2022, his career really took off upon being traded to Indiana prior to the 2022–23 season. With increased minutes and responsibility, he established as one of the Pacers’ pillars and aided in their run to claiming the Eastern Conference championship in 2025 and subsequent berth in the NBA Finals.
No. 18
Dallas Mavericks: Josh Green, F, Arizona
Career stats: Averaging 6.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 349 regular-season appearances
He needs no introduction to Hornets’ fans. He just completed his second year with Charlotte, coming off the bench in 2025-26 after starting in all but one of his 68 games in 2024-25. Known more for his defense, he is a streaky 3-point shooter and can space the floor for the likes of star guard LaMelo Ball.
2019
No. 14
Boston Celtics: Romeo Langford, G, Indiana
Career stats: Averaged 4.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.7 assists in 141 regular-season appearances
His career got off on a rough note thanks to multiple injuries, which required surgery to his right wrist and right ankle, and he never found a rhythm offensively for Boston. He was traded to San Antonio in 2022 as part of the package that sent Derrick White to the Celtics.
No. 18
Indiana Pacers: Goga Bitazde, PF/C, Serbia
Career stats: Averaging 5.5 points, five rebounds and 1.3 assists in 383 regular-season appearances
He turned out to be a disappointment with Indiana, leading to getting waived in 2023. However, he rebounded rather nicely after being signed by the Orlando Magic. He’s become an integral piece of the Magic’s frontline off the bench, getting rewarded by Orlando with a $25 million extension in 2024.
2018
No. 14
Denver Nuggets: Michael Porter Jr., F, Missouri
Career stats: Averaging 24.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, three assists in 383 regular-season appearances
Injuries derailed his rookie season, leading him to miss the entire campaign due to multiple back surgeries. He quickly developed into a potent scorer and had a key role in Denver winning the NBA championship in 2023 before being traded to Brooklyn in 2025.
No. 18
San Antonio Spurs: Lonnie Walker IV, F, Miami
Career stats: Averaged 10 points, 1.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists in 397 regular-season appearances
A streaky scorer, he logged four seasons in San Antonio where quickly became a rotational piece and posted a career-best 28 points in 2019 a matchup with the Houston Rockets in 2019. He also played for the Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers.
2017
No. 14
Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo, F, Kentucky
Career stats: Averaged 16.2 points, nine rebounds, 3.8 assists in 620 regular-season appearances
Given he was a North Carolina high school prodigy and played at High Point Christian, near Greensboro, during his senior year, many are already familiar with him. During his nine seasons with the Heat, Adebayo has been a three-time NBA all-star and five team NBA all-defense team selection, helping Miami make it to two NBA Finals.
No. 18
Indiana Pacers: T.J. Leaf, PF, UCLA
Career stats: Averaged 3.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, 0.3 assists in 120 regular-season appearances
He never really caught on and wasn’t enough of a consistent producer to gain the coaching staff’s full trust. He couldn’t dent a big-man rotation that had Domantas Sabonis, Goga Bitadze, Justin Holiday and Doug McDermott.
2016
No. 14
Chicago Bulls: Denzel Valentine, G, Michigan State
Career stats: Averaged seven points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 256 regular-season appearances
During his five seasons with Chicago, his best showing came in 2017–2018 when he started in 37 of the 77 games he played in, averaging 10.2 points per game and making close to 39% of his attempts from 3-point range. He last appeared in the NBA in 2022 while on a 10-day contract with Utah.
No. 18
Detroit Pistons: Henry Ellenson, PF/C, Marquette
Career stats: Averaged 4.1 points and 2.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 83 regular-season appearances
The bulk of his five seasons in the league came with Detroit, where he was primarily a backup. He also played in 19 games for the New York Knicks in 2018-19, signing a pair of 10-day contracts before getting inked for the rest of the season.
