expansion draft and he was selected by the Charlotte Hornets. Bogues told the Washington Post that he had "no quarrel" with the Bullets for leaving him unprotected and his agents reported that he was excited to start anew in Charlotte. In Charlotte's first season, head coach Dick Harter confined Bogues to the bench, preferring to use him to provide short bursts of energy as a substitute. Harter was fired during the following season and Bogues began to flourish in the up-tempo offenses run by his successors, Gene Littles and Allan Bristow. Bogues would go on to play parts of ten seasons with the Hornets, spending the vast majority of his time as a starter and becoming one of the faces of the Hornets alongside Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson. During his time in Charlotte, the Hornets rose from mediocrity to a serious contender; Bogues three times led the team to the playoffs. During this time, Bogues was wildly popular among basketball fans, as were the Hornets. In all six seasons between 1989 and 1995, he finished in the top ten in the league in assists, only once finishing worse than fourth. In 1992–93, Bogues had the NBA's best assist-to-turnover ratio. One of his best seasons came in 1993–94 when he averaged a double-double, including a second place finish in assists per game. In the 1994–95 season, he set a career high with 10.8 points per game. However, in August 1995, after six consecutive seasons of an increasing scoring average, he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee. The recovery and repeated setbacks saw him placed on the injured list at least three separate times in the 1995–96 season. He finished the season with only fourteen points in six games. Bogues returned to action in earnest the following season but missed 17 games and his production had dropped off slightly across the board. Bogues's relationship with the team soured considerably in 1997. In June, coach Dave Cowens suggested that Bogues should consider retiring due to his nagging knee injury. Only a week later, the Hornets signed point guard David Wesley, his presumptive replacement. In August, owner George Shinn assured Bogues that he would be able to finish his playing career with the team. However, the team later requested that he undergo a preseason MRI on his injured knee. On November 7, Bogues was traded, along with Tony Delk, to the Golden