Charlotte Hornets Trivia
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60 free Charlotte Hornets trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
This Charlotte Hornets trivia quiz covers both lives of the franchise: the 1988 expansion team that sold out the Coliseum 364 games running in Alexander Julian's teal pinstripes, Larry Johnson and Alonzo Mourning, Muggsy Bogues, Glen Rice and the Kobe Bryant draft-night trade, then the move to New Orleans, the Bobcats years under Bob Johnson and Michael Jordan, the 7–59 season, Kemba Walker, the 2014 return of the Hornets name and the LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller era. There are gentle questions for newer fans (what is the arena called, who is Hugo, which brand makes the uniforms) and hard ones for lifers, such as which name actually won the 2003 naming contest, who coached the first game, and how old the Coliseum was when it came down. Uniforms, mascots, ownership and the Miami rivalry all feature. Every answer was checked against primary and encyclopaedic sources before it went in, so when you miss one you can trust the explanation. Play it solo or run it as a round at your next Buzz City watch party. For the wider league, try our NBA trivia page next.
30 of 60 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01What name did the Hornets' uptown Charlotte arena take in 2016?
Spectrum Center
Spectrum Center took its name from Charter Communications' consumer brand after Charter absorbed the arena's previous naming-rights sponsor; the building had opened in 2005 as Charlotte Bobcats Arena.
Q 02In which year did the original Charlotte Hornets begin play as an NBA expansion team?
1988
The Hornets played their first game in November 1988 as one of two expansion clubs added that season, and finished their debut year 20–62.
Q 03Who was the founding owner who brought the Hornets to Charlotte?
George Shinn
George Shinn, a Kannapolis-born entrepreneur who made his fortune running business colleges, won the expansion franchise and owned the club through its move away from Charlotte.
Q 04Which name was originally planned for the expansion team before a contest produced 'Hornets'?
Charlotte Spirit
The club was to be called the Charlotte Spirit until a fan name-the-team contest chose 'Hornets', a nod to the city's Revolutionary War nickname.
Q 05The 'Hornets' name comes from a remark by which British general after the 1780 Battle of Charlotte?
Cornwallis
Cornwallis, whose army briefly occupied Charlotte in 1780, is said to have called the town 'a hornet's nest of rebellion', and the nickname stuck.
Q 06Which North Carolina-born fashion designer created the original Hornets uniforms?
Alexander Julian
Alexander Julian, a Chapel Hill native behind the Colours menswear label, later gave North Carolina's Tar Heels their argyle basketball uniforms as well.
Q 07What design feature did the original Hornets uniforms bring to the NBA for the first time?
Pinstripes
Pinstripes had never appeared on an NBA uniform until the Hornets' debut set; the Orlando Magic adopted their own pinstripes the following season.
Q 08Which colour did the Hornets choose as their primary colour, sparking a sports fashion craze?
Teal
Teal, paired with purple from the club's first season, became the hottest colour in sports merchandise and was restored when the Hornets name returned to Charlotte.
Q 09Who was the Hornets' first head coach?
Dick Harter
Dick Harter, a defence-first coach, clashed with his players and was fired 40 games into the second season with an 8–32 record.
Q 10Which team handed the Hornets a 133–93 defeat in their first-ever NBA game?
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers, then a rising team built around Brad Daugherty and Mark Price, routed the expansion Hornets in their debut; Charlotte won its first game four days later.
Q 11How many consecutive home games did the original Hornets sell out at the Charlotte Coliseum?
364
The run of 364 sellouts began during the Hornets' first season and ended early in 1997–98, filling the cavernous Coliseum night after night for nearly nine years.
Q 12What fan nickname for the Charlotte Coliseum was later revived for the Hornets' new arena?
The Hive
The Hive was the fans' name for the cavernous Coliseum, and the nickname was revived for the club's uptown arena after the Hornets name returned.
Q 13Which UNLV forward did the Hornets draft first overall in 1991, then Rookie of the Year?
Larry Johnson
Larry Johnson, taken first overall out of UNLV, won Rookie of the Year in 1992 and played the dunking 'Grandmama' in Converse commercials.
Q 21To which city did the original Hornets relocate in 2002?
New Orleans
New Orleans took in the Hornets after attendance collapsed in Charlotte; that franchise was renamed the Pelicans in 2013 and later handed the original Hornets' history back to Charlotte.
Q 22Which BET founder became the first Black majority owner in modern US major pro sports with the 2002 Charlotte franchise?
Robert L. Johnson
Robert L. Johnson, who built Black Entertainment Television into a cable giant, paid a $300 million expansion fee for the franchise that debuted as the Bobcats in 2004.
Q 23Which hip-hop artist was a notable co-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats?
Nelly
Nelly, the St. Louis rapper behind 'Hot in Herre', was a minority partner in the Bobcats' original ownership group.
Q 14Which Georgetown centre did the Hornets select second overall in 1992?
Alonzo Mourning
Alonzo Mourning averaged 21 points, 10 rebounds and 3.5 blocks as a rookie, runner-up to Shaquille O'Neal for Rookie of the Year, and was an All-Star by 1994.
Q 15The Hornets' first-ever playoff series win in 1993 came against which team?
Boston Celtics
The Hornets beat the Boston Celtics 3–1 in the 1993 first round, clinching on a last-second jumper in Game 4, then fell to the Knicks in five.
Q 16Which sharpshooter did the Hornets receive in the 1995 trade of their star centre?
Glen Rice
Glen Rice averaged a career-high 26.8 points in 1996–97, won that season's All-Star Game MVP and finished third in league MVP voting.
Q 17On draft night 1996, the Hornets traded which 13th overall pick to the Lakers for Vlade Divac?
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant, drafted straight out of Lower Merion High School, was dealt for Vlade Divac before ever wearing a Hornets jersey and won five titles with the Lakers.
Q 18Which 5-foot-3 guard, the shortest NBA player ever, ran the Hornets' offense in the 1990s?
Muggsy Bogues
Muggsy Bogues, taken from the Bullets in the expansion draft, spent ten seasons in Charlotte and set the franchise career assists record.
Q 19The Hornets retired the number of which guard after his death in a car accident in Charlotte in 2000?
Bobby Phills
Bobby Phills, a defensive specialist in his third Hornets season, died aged 30 while racing a teammate home from practice; his No. 13 was retired the following month.
Q 20Which ex-Celtics big man coached the Hornets to their best original-era season, 54–28 in 1996–97?
Dave Cowens
Dave Cowens, a Hall of Fame centre and 1973 league MVP, took over in 1996 and guided the Hornets to 54 wins before resigning early in the 1999 lockout season.
Q 24Which name actually won the 2003 fan vote to name Charlotte's new team, only to be rejected by ownership?
Flight
Flight, a nod to North Carolina's place in aviation history, topped the 2003 fan poll, but ownership overruled the result and chose Bobcats instead.
Q 25Which UConn centre, drafted second overall by the Bobcats in 2004, won Rookie of the Year?
Emeka Okafor
Emeka Okafor, fresh from leading Connecticut to the 2004 NCAA title, averaged 15.1 points and 10.9 rebounds in the expansion Bobcats' first season to win Rookie of the Year.
Q 26In which year did the Hornets' future majority owner, a Hall of Famer, first buy a minority stake?
2006
Michael Jordan first bought into the Bobcats in 2006, taking charge of basketball operations, and became majority owner four years later, the first former player to control an NBA franchise.
Q 27Which Hall of Fame coach took over the Bobcats in 2008 and led them to their first playoff berth in 2010?
Larry Brown
Larry Brown, the first coach to win both an NCAA and an NBA title, guided the 2009–10 Bobcats to 44 wins and the franchise's first playoff trip, a sweep by Orlando.
Q 28Who was the only player to make an All-Star team while the franchise was called the Bobcats?
Gerald Wallace
Gerald Wallace, nicknamed 'Crash' for his reckless hustle, made the 2010 All-Star team and was traded to Portland the following season.
Q 29What was the Bobcats' record in 2011–12, the worst winning percentage the NBA had seen?
7–59
The 7–59 finish in the lockout-shortened 2011–12 season gave the Bobcats a .106 winning percentage, below the 9–73 1972–73 76ers' .110.
Q 30How many consecutive games did the Bobcats lose to close the 2011–12 season?
23
The Bobcats lost their final 23 games of 2011–12, a streak that ended only in the next season's opener with a win over Indiana.