The Charlotte Hornets franchise is going through many changes in the front office and coaching staff, and the new regime faces a unique challenge: attendance. Despite being located in one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the United States with a growing population of over 2.7 million, the Hornets faced the lowest average home attendance in the NBA during the 2023-24 season, according to Statista. This discrepancy between market potential and attendance presents both a problem and an opportunity for the franchise and its new front office.

A simple explanation for the low attendance is the team’s lack of success in recent years. Over the last five years, the Hornets have had the fifth-worst winning percentage in the NBA with a .384 winning percentage.

However, not long ago, during the 2021-2022 NBA season, the Hornets were ranked 15th in the NBA statistics with a 43-39 attendance record. This proves that the Hornets have the potential to be in the top 15 in attendance. It is not due to a lack of market or fan interest, but rather their lack of success and winning culture that has negatively affected attendance at Hornets games in recent seasons.

It may sound obvious, but a win really is the cure-all. The Hornets have a young, exciting roster, and with the changes in management and coaching staff, fans are becoming increasingly optimistic that good times are ahead. The roster is made up of highly talented young players who, as they develop, will play entertaining basketball that will draw fans. However, until that translates to wins on the court and playoff basketball in Charlotte, I suspect attendance will remain in the bottom half of the NBA.

When you look around the league and find teams that operate in similar or smaller markets but are still consistently in the top 15 in viewership, you’ll find that they all share a sustained culture of winning. Teams like Cleveland, Portland, and Utah have maintained a competitive basketball culture over the years and have been rewarded with consistently positive viewership. For almost all teams, viewership drops when the team doesn’t perform well on the court, which is to be expected. However, it’s the teams that have built a winning culture that keeps fans sticking around and attending games even when they’re not winning. That should be the goal of the new leadership, to improve viewership and build a winning culture, and getting Hornets fans to attend games won’t be a problem.

Local Hornets fans who have seen enough games at the Spectrum Center over the years know that when times are good, the city can support the Hornets and give them a real home field advantage. However, if the quality on the field doesn’t continually improve, attendance won’t improve either, and we’ll continue to get criticism from the mainstream media like this:

I know the Hornets have a great fan base that is loyal and constantly there for the team, and if you’re sick of seeing 50% of the fans at the Spectrum Center wearing the away team’s jerseys, local Hornets fans need to support this new regime and be part of the winning culture we want to see on the court. I truly believe this team that is being built has a chance to make the playoffs next season, and the greater Charlotte area will be supportive along the way and show the rest of the league that the Carolinas have a strong NBA fan base, which will be reflected in the top 15 NBA attendance in the 2024-2025 NBA season.

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