Hornets Happenings: The Five Best Hornets Draft Picks of All Time

As we sit hear in anticipation of July 8, waiting to see if the Hornets will improve the themselves with some solid free agent acquisitions, I thought it was a good opportunity to reflect back on the Hornets' historical drafts and rate who were the best players ever taken by the Bees.

The ground rules are simple:
1. The Hornets had to have drafted the player
2. The quality of the draft pick is evaluated on how the player performed over his NBA career (or career to date), not necessarily his performance for the Hornets
3. The Kobe Bryant draft and trade deal does not count. My reasoning for this is simple: this is my article and I say so!
4. The draft pick is considered for the relative position of the draft pick and who was drafted above and below the pick.

No. 1: Chris Paul

Drafted fourth overall in the 2005 draft behind Andrew Bogut, Marvin Williams, and Deron Williams, CP3 is going to be remembered as one of the top five point guards of all time.

No. 2: Larry Johnson

No, not that Larry Johnson. Larry Johnson the stud power forward.

Johnson was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the first overall pick of the 1991 NBA Draft and then traded to the New York Knicks for Anthony Mason and Brad Lohaus on July 14, 1996.

Looking at that draft, Johnson was arguably the best player on the board. He went on to score 11,450 over a 10-year career.

No. 3: Alonzo Mourning

'Zo was selected second overall in the 1992 NBA Draft behind Shaquille O'Neal, and he was indeed worthy of the No. 2 pick that year.

Mourning was named to the NBA All-Rookie team in 1993 after averaging 21.0 pts, 10.3 rebounds, and 3.47 blocks, and he finished second to O'Neal in Rookie of the Year voting. He posted the highest scoring average of any rookie in Hornets history.

Mourning and O'Neal were the first NBA rookies since David Robinson in 1989-90 to average 20 or more points and 10-plus rebounds in their first seasons. He shattered the Hornets' blocked shots record, becoming the team's all-time career leader in the 49th game of the season.

In the 1994–95 season, Mourning and teammate Larry Johnson led the Hornets to a 50-win season and took them to the playoffs. Mourning ranked first on the team in scoring (21.3 ppg), rebounding (9.9 rpg), blocked shots (2.92 per game), and field goal percentage (.519).

No. 4: David West

The 2005-06 draft class was extremely strong. Among the stars taken ahead of David West were LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh. Others taken before West were Žarko Čabarkapa, Reece Gaines, and Marcus Banks.

West was drafted in the first round (18th overall) in the 2003 NBA Draft, and it is tough to argue with two-time All-Star West being on this list. In the 2005–06 season West enjoyed a breakthrough, averaging 17.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and .512 field goal percentage in 74 games.

That year, he finished second in the voting for the NBA Most Improved Player Award behind Boris Diaw of the Phoenix Suns.

No. 5: Baron Davis

I assure you, I am no Baron Davis fan. He quit on the Hornets. Davis was taken after Elton Brand and Steve Francis, while being one pick before Lamar Odom.

From a career perspective, it is hard to argue with his stats. Davis has been durable, averaging 35.4 minutes per game over his career, and has averaged nearly 17 points and 7.3 assists per game.

The Bench

Some other players that Hornets have drafted that deserve mention are: Rex Chapman, JR Smith, Ricky Davis and Jamaal Magliore.

I would also like to add Brandon Bass, the free agent forward whom I hope that the Hornets give serious consideration to acquiring during this signing season.