The 1996–97 NBA season was the 9th season for the Charlotte Hornets in the National Basketball Association. For the first time since the 1990–91 season, Larry Johnson was not on the team's opening day roster. The Hornets had the 13th pick in the 1996 NBA draft, and selected high school basketball star Kobe Bryant, but soon traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Vlade Divac, acquired Anthony Mason from the New York Knicks, and signed free agent Tony Smith during the off-season. The team also hired former Boston Celtics star Dave Cowens as their new head coach. Under Cowens, and with the addition of Divac and Mason, the new-look Hornets played better than expected. After an 8–9 start to the season, the Hornets won 21 of their next 31 games, holding a 29–19 record at the All-Star break. At midseason, the team signed free agent and former All-Star forward Tom Chambers in January, then traded Scott Burrell, second-year guard Anthony Goldwire, and second-year center George Zidek to the Golden State Warriors, and acquired Ricky Pierce from the Denver Nuggets in February. However, Chambers was released to free agency after 12 games. The Hornets posted a nine-game winning streak in April, and finished fourth in the Central Division with a franchise best record at 54–28, making it back to the playoffs after a one-year absence. Glen Rice had the finest season of his career, finishing third in the league in scoring with a career-high of 26.8 points per game, earning All-NBA Second Team honors, and finishing in fifth place in Most Valuable Player voting. Rice was also selected for the 1997 NBA All-Star Game, where he set several scoring records and was selected the game's MVP. In addition, Mason averaged 16.2 points, 11.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game, and earned All-NBA Third Team and NBA All-Defensive Second Team honors, while Divac and Matt Geiger both provided the best center combo in the league, as Divac averaged 12.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 2.2 blocks per game, and Geiger provided the team with 8.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, but only played just 49 games due to a back injury. Sixth man Dell Curry contributed 14.8 points per game off the bench, while Muggsy Bogues provided with 8.0 points, 7.2 assists and 1.3 steals per game, and Smith contributed 5.0 points per game. Cowens finished in