The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The team plays its home games at the Smoothie King Center.
The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at the Spectrum Center.
Chukwuemeka Ndubuisi "Emeka" Okafor is an American former professional basketball player. Okafor attended Bellaire High School in Bellaire, Texas and the University of Connecticut, where in 2004 he won a national championship. In his first season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2004–05, Okafor played for the Charlotte Bobcats and was named Rookie of the Year. He was traded to the New Orleans Hornets in 2009 and was then dealt to the Washington Wizards in 2012. However, a herniated disc in his neck caused Okafor to miss four consecutive seasons from 2013 to 2017 before being medically cleared to play.
The Southwest Division is one of the three divisions in the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Despite its name, the division is actually located in the South Central United States. The division consists of five teams: the Dallas Mavericks, the Houston Rockets, the Memphis Grizzlies, the New Orleans Pelicans and the San Antonio Spurs. Three of the teams, the Mavericks, Rockets, and Spurs, are based in Texas.
The Central Division is one of the three divisions in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The division consists of five teams, the Chicago Bulls, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Detroit Pistons, the Indiana Pacers, and the Milwaukee Bucks. All teams except the Cavaliers are former Midwest Division teams; thus, the Central Division now largely resembles the Midwest Division in the 1970s.
The Southeast Division is one of the three divisions in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The division consists of five teams: the Atlanta Hawks, the Charlotte Hornets, the Miami Heat, the Orlando Magic and the Washington Wizards.
The expansion draft for the construction of the Charlotte Bobcats, recognized at the time as the 30th NBA franchise, was held on June 22, 2004. The Bobcats selected 19 players from other teams' unprotected players lists and constructed their squad for what was regarded at the time as their inaugural season.
The 2004–05 NBA season was the first season for the Charlotte Bobcats in the National Basketball Association. This season marked the return of NBA basketball to Charlotte after a two-year hiatus. The original Hornets had moved to New Orleans after the 2001–02 season to become the New Orleans Hornets, now the New Orleans Pelicans. The Bobcats had the second overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft, which they used to select Emeka Okafor out of the University of Connecticut. The team hired Bernie Bickerstaff as head coach during the offseason, and added veteran players like Gerald Wallace, Primož Brezec, Brevin Knight, Jason Hart, Jason Kapono, Melvin Ely and Steve Smith to their roster. The Bobcats played their first game at the Charlotte Coliseum on November 4, which was a 103–96 loss to the Washington Wizards. They would win their first game defeating the Orlando Magic 111–100 at home on November 6. However, the expansion team struggled losing ten straight games in January and March, finishing fourth in the Southeast Division with an 18–64 record. Okafor averaged 15.1 points, 10.9 rebounds, 1.7 blocks per game and was named Rookie of The Year, and selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
The 2011–12 Charlotte Bobcats season was the 8th season of the Charlotte Bobcats in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the 22nd overall season of NBA basketball in Charlotte. Considered to be the worst NBA team of all time, the Bobcats failed to improve on their 34–48 record from the previous season and set the record for the worst winning percentage in a season with a .106 winning percentage, "surpassing" the 1972–73 Philadelphia 76ers (.110) for the lowest winning percentage in NBA history. They were eliminated from playoff contention on March 28, 2012, after an 88–83 home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, with a record of 7–41. On March 17, 2012, the Bobcats managed to eke out their final win of the season against the Toronto Raptors, narrowly avoiding tying the 1947–48 Providence Steamrollers for the record of the lowest number of wins in NBA history. April proved to be particularly unforgiving, with the team failing to secure a single victory, embarking on a harrowing 23-game losing streak that lasted until the start of the following season, further cementing their reputation as one of the most struggling franchises in NBA history. The Bobcats eventually clinched the worst record in NBA history, in a shortened season or otherwise, by losing 104–84 to the New York Knicks in their final regular season game on April 26, 2012.
The 2004–05 New Orleans Hornets season was the franchise's third season in the National Basketball Association. The Hornets moved from the Eastern Conference's Central Division to the tougher Southwest Division of the Western Conference for the season. Under new head coach Byron Scott, the Hornets played and suffered their worst basketball ways losing their first eight games, which led to an awful 2–29 start. Many players were traded away during the season. The team traded David Wesley to the Houston Rockets in December, then midway through the season dealt Baron Davis to the Golden State Warriors, and sent Jamal Mashburn, who was lost for the entire season with a knee injury, to the Philadelphia 76ers for Glenn Robinson, who never played for the Hornets and was released to free agency and signed with the San Antonio Spurs. Mashburn would never suit up for the 76ers.
The New Orleans Pelicans are a professional basketball team in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team commenced play in 2002 after the NBA granted founder George Shinn an expansion franchise to play in New Orleans. The Pelicans' establishment was unusual compared to most modern expansion teams in that New Orleans' roster was not stocked through an expansion draft. Instead, Shinn transferred the entire basketball organization of his former team, the Charlotte Hornets, to his new franchise.
The following is a timeline of the expansion and evolution of franchises in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league was formed as the Basketball Association of America (BAA) in 1946 and took its current name in 1949. The histories of NBA franchises that were also members of the American Basketball League (ABL), National Basketball League (NBL), National Pro Basketball League (NPBL), and American Basketball Association (ABA) are also included.
The history of the National Basketball Association's Charlotte Hornets dates to 1985 when founder George Shinn first thought of bringing professional basketball to Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets commenced play as an expansion team in 1988. After fourteen seasons under its original ownership, the franchise suspended operations in 2002 when Shinn transferred the basketball organization under his control to a new franchise in New Orleans. The Charlotte franchise was subsequently acquired, reactivated and renamed the Bobcats by Robert L. Johnson. After restocking its roster through their second expansion draft, the team resumed play in 2004. Johnson sold controlling interest to Hall of Fame legend and North Carolinian native Michael Jordan in 2010. Jordan, who restored the club's original name in 2014, sold the team to group led by Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin in 2023. The franchise has reached the postseason twelve times and made ten playoff appearances, although as of 2024 they are the oldest club in all of North American major professional sports to have never won a division championship.
