The Charlotte Hornets hold two first-round picks — No. 14 and No. 18 via the Orlando Magic — and Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley projects them to use both to fortify their frontcourt around a perimeter-oriented core that lit up the second half of last season. Michigan senior Yaxel Lendeborg goes to Charlotte at No. 14, and Kentucky sophomore Jayden Quaintance at No. 18 — two big men with contrasting skill sets who together could give the Hornets the frontcourt depth they’ve lacked during their rebuild.

Lendeborg is one of the most unique prospects in the class. He is 23 years old — he’ll be 24 as a rookie — after a journey that took him from poor grades keeping him off his high school varsity team, to junior college, to UAB, to entering and withdrawing from a previous draft class, and finally to Michigan, where he won a national championship and swept his way to Big Ten recognition. His story reads like a cautionary tale that became a triumph: he has a 7-foot-4 wingspan at 240 pounds, genuine ball-handling, championship-level experience, and the versatility to defend four positions. The knock is his age and the question of how much higher his ceiling can go at this stage.

For the Hornets, who finished the season with several rotational holes at the four and five spots, Lendeborg’s readiness is a feature. Miles Bridges, Josh Green, and Grant Williams all have one season remaining on their contracts. Charlotte needs frontcourt reinforcements who can contribute within the next 12 months, not in three years. Lendeborg’s polished two-way game — described by Buckley as immediately welcomed for his length, physicality, and toughness — addresses that urgency at a price point where the typical pick would be a developmental lottery ticket.

The direct opportunity cost at No. 14 is Chicago’s pick at No. 15: Hannes Steinbach, the 6-foot-11 Washington center with dominant offensive rebounding and post-scoring polish. Steinbach would have given Charlotte a true center anchor, but his interior profile overlaps more with Moussa Diabaté and Ryan Kalkbrenner than Lendeborg’s versatile four-man role does.

At No. 18, Quaintance is the big swing. He was blocking everything in sight at Arizona State as a 17-year-old freshman before a catastrophic sequence of injuries — ACL, meniscus, fractured knee — followed by a transfer to Kentucky and a shutdown for the remainder of his sophomore year. When healthy, he’s a defensive force with freakish explosiveness for a 6-foot-10, 253-pound frame. Charlotte’s ability to monitor and manage his recovery is the central question. The player selected immediately after No. 18 — Toronto’s Christian Anderson at No. 19 — is a far safer option, but Anderson’s ceiling as a playmaking guard doesn’t match what Quaintance could become if he heals.

Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor projects Lendeborg to Charlotte at No. 14 and Chris Cenac at No. 18. CBS Sports’ Adam Finkelstein and Gary Parrish project Morez Johnson Jr. to Charlotte at No. 14. Tankathon projects Karim López for Charlotte’s first pick.

What Other Outlets Are Projecting

Outlet	Projected Player
Bleacher Report	Yaxel Lendeborg, PF, Michigan (#14); Jayden Quaintance, PF/C, Kentucky (#18)
CBS Sports	Morez Johnson Jr., PF, Michigan (#14, Finkelstein)
Tankathon	Karim López, SF, New Zealand (#14)
Yahoo Sports	Yaxel Lendeborg, PF, Michigan (#14); Chris Cenac, PF/C, Houston (#18)

Using both first-round picks on frontcourt talent is the right call for Charlotte because the Hornets’ perimeter is already their organizational strength — they just rode guard and wing play to one of the most efficient second halves in the Eastern Conference. What they lack is the interior complement to that group, and Lendeborg’s championship pedigree plus Quaintance’s defensive upside gives them two legitimate big-man building blocks rather than asking their perimeter core to carry all the competitive weight. Two picks, two different timelines, both building toward the same frontcourt need.