Charlotte Hornets: Top Ten Draftees in Team History

Oct 29, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; The basketball court for the Charlotte Hornets sports the new logo before the opening home game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports

Number 7: Kendall Gill

Drafted: 1990
Pick: 1st Round, 5th Pick

Kendall Gill came to the Hornets when they were still trying to find an identity. They would find it and success in the years after his arrival. Gill was a 6’5” guard who could a bit of everything, but he knew it too. Although he was part of the first Hornets team to make the playoffs and even beat the Boston Celtics, Gill resented the reduction of his role to make room for newer stars in Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning.

As a result he was traded to the Seattle Supersonics in 1993 season in a set of trades that ultimately brought Hersey Hawkins to the Queen City. That would not be the last we heard of Gill in the Queen City. Gill’s time in Seattle matured him and the Hornets brought him back for one more season in 1995-96. My younger self was skeptical, but the move worked out for what turned out to be part of a season.

Gill went on to play for another ten years in the pros. During his four seasons with the Hornets, he averaged a little over 15 points, four assists, and four rebounds per game. His peak production was the year he averaged 20 points a game, 1991. That also marks the year the Hornets drafted Larry Johnson.

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