1995–96 Charlotte Hornets season

The 1995–96 Charlotte Hornets season was the eighth season for the Charlotte Hornets in the National Basketball Association.^[1] During the off-season, the team re-acquired former Hornets guard Kendall Gill from the Seattle SuperSonics.^[2][3][4] On the first day of the regular season, which began on November 3, 1995, the Hornets acquired Glen Rice, Matt Geiger and second-year guard Khalid Reeves from the Miami Heat.^[5][6][7]

With the addition of Rice, Gill and Geiger, the Hornets struggled losing eight of their first eleven games of the regular season, and played slightly below .500 in winning percentage with a 22–24 record at the All-Star break.^[8] In January, the team traded Gill, and Reeves to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for All-Star guard Kenny Anderson, who became the team's starting point guard,^[9][10][11] as Muggsy Bogues only played just six games due to a knee injury.^[12] Scott Burrell was also out for the remainder of the season due to a shoulder injury after only playing just 20 games.^[13][14] The Hornets played above .500 for the remainder of the season, but lost five of their final seven games, finishing in sixth place in the Central Division with a 41–41 record, and missing the NBA playoffs by finishing just one game behind the 8th–seeded Miami Heat.^[15]

Rice averaged 21.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, and led the Hornets with 171 three-point field goals, while Larry Johnson averaged 20.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game, and Anderson provided the team with 15.2 points, 8.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game in 38 games after the trade. In addition, sixth man Dell Curry contributed 14.5 points and 1.3 steals per game, along with 164 three-point field goals, while Burrell provided with 13.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, and Geiger averaged 11.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Robert Parish averaged 3.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, and rookie center, and first-round draft pick George Zidek contributed 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.^[16]

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, Rice was selected for the 1996 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Eastern Conference All-Star team; it was his first ever All-Star appearance.^[17][18][19] In addition, Rice also participated in the NBA Three-Point Shootout for the second consecutive year,^[20][21] while Zidek was selected for the NBA Rookie Game, as a member of the Eastern Conference Rookie team.^[20][22] Curry finished tied in seventh place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, while Geiger finished tied in 14th place in Most Improved Player voting.^[23]

The Hornets led the NBA in home-game attendance for the seventh time in their eight-year history, with an attendance of 985,722 at the Charlotte Coliseum during the regular season.^[16][24] The Hornets, along with the Indiana Pacers, were the only two teams in the league to defeat the Chicago Bulls on the road during their historic 72–10 season, as the Hornets defeated the Bulls, 98–97 at the United Center on April 8, 1996.^[25][26][27]

Following the season, Johnson was traded to the New York Knicks after five seasons with the Hornets,^[28][29][30] while Anderson signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers,^[31][32][33] Robert Parish signed with the Chicago Bulls,^[34][35][36] Michael Adams retired, and head coach Allan Bristow resigned after five seasons with the franchise.^[37][38][39]