Charlotte Hornets: 5 takeaways from 2017-18 NBA season

2. Mitch Kupchak taking over front office

The Hornets will have a new person overlooking the organization for the foreseeable future. Richard Cho was hired as general manager on June 14, 2011 and was fired Feb. 20, 2018. In his place, the Hornets have decided to bring in Mitch Kupchak.

Kupchak was named team president and general manager on April 8, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Gersson Rosas of the Houston Rockets and Marc Eversley of the Philadelphia 76ers were also interviewed, but Kupchak emerged as the clear frontrunner for the job rather quickly.

Kupchak oversaw some very successful seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers. He helped win four championships during his time there, as he began as an assistant general manager in 1986 before taking over as general manager in 2000. Kupchak also has a relationship with Hornets owner Michael Jordan given their ties to the University of North Carolina.

While the titles are nice, there are some concerns about how well Kupchak can put together a roster. The end of his Lakers’ tenure was marred by poor decisions. The signings of Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng in the summer of 2016 effectively cost him his job. Giving Kobe Bryant a two-year, $48.5 million deal after his Achilles injury didn’t help either.

The championships speak for themselves. Winning a title at any level isn’t an easy thing to do. However, there are some concerns about Kupchak’s ability to build up a roster, which is what he will be tasked with in Charlotte.