The 2026 Las Vegas Summer League has come and gone, and for Charlotte Hornets fans, it did not recapture the magic of their joyous title run in 2025. And to be frank, a lot of it wasn’t really that fun at all. Still we learned some things, and while it isn’t wise to read too much into Summer League, it’s at least worth talking about.

Liam McNeeley is going to be a rotation player before long

I don’t know where he fits in this season, but Liam McNeeley clearly has the juice to contribute to the Hornets at some point in the near future. He was dominant in his limited minutes last year before injury cut short his summer league, and he picked up where he left off when he returned this summer. McNeeley, like Kon Knueppel, has a bit of reputation as a 3-point specialist (for whatever reason), but he’s repeatedly shown there’s a lot more to his game than that. He averaged 21.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game while shooting a blistering 52.6% from three. However, the most impressive thing about his play was probably the six free throws he attempted per game, and that’s with the one-shot-for-two-points free throws they were doing. Under normal rules, he probably would’ve averaged 10 to 11 free throws per game in about 27 minutes. He knows how to play and he knows how to score. He’ll be pushing for second string minutes next season.

Hannes Steinbach is more of a center right now

The Hornets took Hannes Steinbach with the 14th overall pick knowing he was a bit of a tweener between center and power forward. In Summer League, he primarily operated as a center, and that’s what he seems to be most comfortable doing. He didn’t attempt a three until the second half of the last game, and he scored almost exclusively in the paint. I think that’s a perfect starting point for him though. I’d rather my big be drawn to operating around the basket and then build out from there. That’s much preferable to a big that has a natural tendency to float on the perimeter. It’s like the idea that’s easier to take an aggressive player and tone it down than it is to take a passive player and make them more aggressive. Steinbach is going to be a bruiser, and the perimeter skills can get stacked on top of that.

We need Christian Anderson to find his shot to see what he’s capable of

Anderson was billed as one of if not the best 3-point shooter in his draft class, so of course he came out and shot 21.2% from three in the summer league. You could see some indecisiveness in his shot selection, and I think that also hampered his aggressiveness as a ball handler. He just moved a little too slowly, but I think that’s better if he sees some shots go in early. The threat of his jumper opens up the game for him and his teammates, and we didn’t really get to see what that looks like.

The rookies are fast learners

I know part of this can be chalked up to better players getting shut down and the level of competition deteriorating as summer league winds down, but I do think it was encouraging to see almost linear improvements from Steinbach and Christian Anderson. Steinbach had a few moments in the opener but was otherwise really quiet for the first three games. Then, after the team shut down their returning sophomores, Steinbach dialed up his aggressiveness and dominated each game. He averaged 24.5 points and 13.0 rebounds in the last two games and looked the best player on the floor for most of them. Anderson, meanwhile, struggled with his outside shot but clearly gained comfort with each passing game. In the last two games, he totaled 18 assists and ended his summer league with an 18 point performance. He looked hesitant in the early games but got a lot more decisive and aggressive by the end. Both have some positive momentum heading into camp.

Tidjane Salaun is a role player

Probably not here, but I know there have been some overly optimistic takes out in the Hornets fan world about the type of player Tidjane Salaun can grow into. Seeing how he looked as a third year player in summer league should temper any expectations that he’s any sort of star in the making. I can see the vision of him as an energy forward/big off the bench, but barring any massive leap in ball handling and composure, that’s probably his most likely outcome. To his credit, he finished at the rim at a very high clip in summer league (77.3% on 2-pointers), it was strictly as a finisher. He looks like a guy that’s going to try hard, muck stuff up, and finish the looks that are fed to him. That can be a very useful player, and that’s probably the player he’s going to be.

I want Michael Ajayi to stick around

We talk about it all the time. The Hornets have a type. Michael Ajayi is that type. In summer league, he averaged 8.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He had more than a handful of possessions where he got down in a stance and completely clamped up the opposing ball handler. He always made his presence felt on the floor and mixed it up wherever he could. It’s impossible not to root for those guys. He’s on a two way contract at the moment, so it seems like he’ll be around for a little bit. I’ll be rooting for him to carve out a career as some sort of reserve defender energy guy, whether it be in Charlotte or elsewhere.