Charlotte Hornets: Injury Bug Bites Walker, Stephenson

Everything was perfect.

The Charlotte Hornets had just become, well, the Hornets, after a lengthy 10-year tenure as the Bobcats, they had drafted a gifted scorer in P.J. Hairston and an originally projected top-three pick in Noah Vonleh, and Lance Stephenson had just inked a three-year deal with the team.

Things started to go sour when Vonleh suffered a sports hernia during a summer workout. It was estimated that the surgery required to correct the hernia would cost Vonleh between six and eight weeks, and so far, that timeframe seems to be correct; Vonleh has yet to appear in any of Charlotte’s preseason games.

Just a few weeks later, it was revealed that Gerald Henderson, the Bobcats’ longtime starter at the two-spot, suffered a hamstring strain. Like Vonleh, Hendo has been sidelined for all four of the Hornets’ preseason games.

Optimism all but went out the door when the Hornets were decimated by the tank-happy Philadelphia 76ers (who were without Michael Carter-Williams and Joel Embiid), and when Kemba Walker went down with a knee injury two games later, Hornets fans all around the country hoped that it was nothing too serious.

Luckily, that appears to be the case, as Walker’s injury is believed to be nothing more than a contusion, which, while painful, isn’t career-threatening. Walker is questionable for Charlotte’s fifth preseason game tonight. His new friend in the backcourt, Lance Stephenson, will also likely miss Friday’s game, thanks to a groin strain that was reportedly suffered during practice on Thursday.

Fortunately for the Hornets, it’s still just preseason, so the win-loss record doesn’t mean much at this time. With that said, this team brought in six new rotation players this summer, and thus, preseason is a time in which the group can develop chemistry.

The Eastern Conference as a whole is expected to be stronger and deeper than in years past, and because of this the Hornets need to get out to a hot start to ensure they don’t get left in the dust. With the division-rival Washington Wizards starting the season without Bradley Beal, the Hornets could use the first month or so to get ahead of the pack. But, as the 14-point loss to the Sixers indicated, the Hornets still have a ways to go before they can be considered anything more than a first-round playoff team.

Without health, there cannot be chemistry. Without chemistry, there cannot be success.

With just four exhibition contests left, the team better pray for good health moving forward.