The Carolina Panthers and Charlotte Hornets have both been pretty disappointing for a long time. Neither team has been in the postseason since 2018 and they've both been pretty dismal since then. Since 2020, the Panthers have won 28.6% of their games. The Hornets have won 38.1% of their games since 2019.
The Hornets have not done anything to turn the feeling around for their franchise just yet, but the Panthers might have. For proof, just look at how Bryce Young was greeted at the Hornets game. He attended what turned out to be an utter demolishing by the Atlanta Hawks, and Young's appearance and subsequent cheers might've been the happiest moment all night.
The Hornets were down 30 in the third quarter when Young was on the Jumbotron, but you'd never know that by how the fans reacted. Young has been able to instill a hope in the Panthers fanbase that the Hornets fanbase, most of whom overlap, just doesn't have yet.
Of course, injuries played a role in that and in the loss that Young unfortunately had to endure. LaMelo Ball, perhaps Charlotte's equivalent to Young, was out and has missed a ton of games in 2024-25. Whether or not Young can turn the Panthers around remains to be seen, but he has at least given a hopeless city a glimmer of positivity.
It's not the first time Young has gone to a game. He went to one earlier, a win, and got an autograph from fellow Alabama alum and Charlotte star Brandon Miller.
