The Charlotte Hornets went 19-63 in Charles Lee’s first season as head coach, but they went 44-38 in Year 2 with a loss in the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Lee has this team trending in the right direction, and the Hornets announced they are giving the head coach a new contract extension.
we’re honored to continue building something special with Coach Charles Lee 🐝 pic.twitter.com/jOt5G1Nwea
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) May 7, 2026
Jeff Peterson, the Hornets’ president of basketball operations, said that Lee has done an “outstanding job establishing a foundation” as part of the official release from the team.
The Hornets defeated the Miami Heat in the first play-in game, but they Charlotte then lost to the Orlando Magic to miss out on earning the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Still, it was a notable improvement in Lee’s second season. The 25-win difference marked the largest win improvement in franchise history.
Lee began his coaching career as an assistant at Bucknell before being an NBA assistant with the Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics, which includes being part of two NBA title winners.
Lee was also named the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month after the Hornets went 11-6 in January. Kon Knueppel also finished second in the NBA Rookie of the Year voting, so there are a lot of positives for Charlotte after its second winning season in the last 10 years.
