The 1988–89 Charlotte Hornets season was Charlotte's inaugural season in the National Basketball Association. The "Charlotte Hornets", along with the Miami Heat, began play as expansion teams during the 1988–89 season; the team was originally going to be named the "Spirit", but later on changed it to the "Hornets". The team revealed a new primary logo of a hornet bouncing a basketball, and got new pinstripe uniforms, adding teal and purple to their color scheme. In the 1988 NBA expansion draft, the Hornets selected veteran players like Dell Curry, second-year guard Muggsy Bogues, Mike Holton, Dave Hoppen, Ricky Green, and Mike Brown, who was then traded to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Kelly Tripucka. The team also signed free agents; Kurt Rambis, who won four championships with the Los Angeles Lakers, Earl Cureton, and acquired Robert Reid from the Houston Rockets. The Hornets received the eighth overall pick in the 1988 NBA draft, and selected shooting guard Rex Chapman from the University of Kentucky. Dick Harter was hired to be the team's first ever head coach. The Hornets played their first game on November 4, 1988, losing 133–93 at the Charlotte Coliseum to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The team struggled losing 10 of their first 12 games, held a 13–35 record at the All-Star break, then posted two nine-game losing streaks between February and March, and between March and April. The Hornets finished the season last place in the Atlantic Division with a record of 20 wins and 62 losses, and led the NBA in home-game attendance, becoming the first expansion team to do so, with an attendance of 949,858 at the Charlotte Coliseum; it was also an all-time NBA attendance record, which was broken by one of the two next season's expansion teams, the Minnesota Timberwolves the following season. Tripucka led the team in scoring averaging 22.6 points per game, and finished tied in fourth place in Most Improved Player voting, while Chapman averaged 16.9 points per game, and was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team, and Reid provided the team with 14.7 points per game. In addition, Rambis provided with 11.1 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game, while Curry contributed 11.9 points per game off the bench, but only played just 48 games due to a wrist injury, Holton provided with 8.3 points and 6.3 assists per game, Cureton averaged 6.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game, Hoppen provided with 6.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, and Bogues contributed 5.4 points, 7.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game. The team's primary logo remained in use until 2002, while the uniforms lasted until 1997, where they added side panels and additional pinstripes to their jerseys.

Offseason

Expansion draft

The team's roster was filled as a result of an expansion draft in 1988. In a coin flip, the Hornets earned the right to choose either the higher choice in the college draft or the first pick in the expansion draft, picking the former. Most teams use such drafts to pick young players and guarantee a future, but Charlotte chose veterans in order to get a competitive lineup right away. Also sent were Kurt Rambis of the Los Angeles Lakers and Earl Cureton of the Philadelphia 76ers.

NBA draft

Subsequent to the expansion draft, Charlotte was given the eight pick in the 1988 NBA draft. They selected Rex Chapman, a shooting guard out of University of Kentucky.

Roster

Preseason

The Hornets' first official NBA game took place on October 14, 1988, at the Madison Square Garden, and was a 118–97 preseason loss to the New Jersey Nets.

Regular season

The Hornets played their first season in the Eastern Conference's Atlantic Division. The team's first regular season NBA game took place on November 4, 1988, at the Charlotte Coliseum, and was a 133–93 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Despite the huge loss, the Hornets received a standing ovation at the end of the game. November 8, 1988, the team won their first game over the Los Angeles Clippers, 117–105. On December 23, 1988, the Hornets defeated Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls 103–101 at the buzzer in Jordan's first return to North Carolina as a professional. During the season, Kelly Tripucka led the franchise with 22.6 points per game. Despite the Hornets mostly poor play (typical for an expansion franchise), the Hornets led the NBA in attendance during the season, selling out 36 of 41 home games (including the final 30).

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Player statistics

Ragular season

† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Hornets only.

Awards and records

Transactions

Released Clinton Wheeler. Signed Earl Cureton as a free agent. Traded Bernard Thompson to the Houston Rockets for Robert Reid and a 1990 2nd round draft pick (Steve Scheffler was later selected). Signed Kurt Rambis as an unrestricted free agent. Signed Tim Kempton as a free agent. Signed Brian Rowsom as a free agent. Released Sedric Toney. Waived Tom Tolbert. Waived Rickey Green. Signed Sidney Lowe to the first of two 10-day contracts. Signed Greg Kite to a contract for the rest of the season. Waived Ralph Lewis. Player Transactions Citation: