Charlotte Hornets: Three reasons to watch

With the 2016-17 NBA season on the horizon, USA TODAY Sports highlights the top three reasons to watch all 30 teams. We also recap any significant moves made in the offseason and project how your favorite team will finish.

Watchability ranking: 25th

What’s different? The Hornets held on to their second- and third-most valuable players, Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams, and brought in capable veterans Ramon Sessions, Marco Belinelli and Roy Hibbert. But the NBA’s influx of cash led to the departures of Jeremy Lin, Al Jefferson and Courtney Lee, three of their top six scorers from last season.

King Kemba: Fearless sixth-year point guard Kemba Walker finished second in voting for the NBA’s most improved player award last season, upping his points, assists, rebounds and steals while shooting career highs from the field and from three-point range. He also ranked fourth in the league for points scored (42) in clutch situations (last 30 seconds, five-point differential or less). If he can take another step forward, he could make a strong case to become the franchise’s first All-Star since Gerald Wallace (2010).

MKG: The bad news: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is coming off a season in which he played seven games after having two operations on his right shoulder. The good news: He turned 23 in September. Assuming the 2012 No. 2 overall pick can stay on the court and continue to progress, particularly as a shooter, the Hornets will reap the benefits.

The unis: The Hornets debuted their new purple and teal uniforms at the start of the 2014-15 season, paying homage to the color scheme used by the Hornets teams of the 1980s and 1990s. With the teal alternates, black Buzz City alternates, the road purples and the home whites, the Hornets’ uniforms are some of the cleanest in the league.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP

(Statistics from 2015-16 season)

• Kemba Walker - Points: 20.9, assists: 5.2, rebounds: 4.4, steals: 1.6, field goal percentage: 42.7%
• Nicolas Batum - Points: 14.9, rebounds: 6.1, assists: 5.8, steals: 0.9, field goal percentage: 42.6%
• Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (seven games played) - Points: 12.7, rebounds: 6.4, assists: 1.3, steals: 0.4, field goal percentage: 54.1%
• Marvin Williams - Points: 11.7, rebounds: 6.4, assists: 1.4, blocks: 1.0, field goal percentage: 45.2%
• Cody Zeller - Points: 8.7, rebounds: 6.2, assists: 1.0, blocks: 0.9, field goal percentage: 52.9%

How good can they be? Losing Lin, Jefferson and Lee hurts, but the Hornets will be right back in the thick of things in the East, especially if Walker, Batum and Williams pick up where they left off last year.

USA TODAY’s projection: 40-42

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