The Hornets had the thirteenth overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft, and selected high school basketball star Kobe Bryant,[2][3][4][5][6] but soon traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Vlade Divac,[7][8][9][10][11] acquired Anthony Mason from the New York Knicks,[12][13][14][15] and signed free agent Tony Smith during the off-season.
After struggling with an 8–9 start to the regular season, the Hornets won 21 of their next 31 games, holding a 29–19 record at the All-Star break.
[20] At mid-season, the team signed free agent and former All-Star forward Tom Chambers in January,[21][22][23] then traded Scott Burrell to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Donald Royal, and dealt second-year guard Anthony Goldwire, and second-year center George Zidek to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Ricky Pierce in February.
The Hornets posted a nine-game winning streak in April, and finished in fourth place in the Central Division with a franchise best record of 54–28, making it back to the playoffs after a one-year absence.
[43][44][45][40][41] However, in the Eastern Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Hornets were swept by the New York Knicks in three straight games.
[46][47][48][49] The Hornets led the NBA in home-game attendance for the eighth, and final time during their history in Charlotte, with an attendance of 985,722 at the Charlotte Coliseum during the regular season; they also had the best three-point percentage in NBA history, shooting 42.8% from beyond the arch.
Fifteen days later, West traded his starting center, Vlade Divac to the Hornets for the young Kobe Bryant.