The Assist: Kobe Bryant’s Charlotte Hornet draft day photo [photo]

The Charlotte Bobcats are ridding themselves of their horrible moniker and reviving their ole default name. The Former New Orleans Hornets, now Pelicans, were once the Charlotte Hornets. That Hornets squad had rich roots with the likes of Alonzo Mourning, Larry Johnson and Baron Davis in his early career.

We all know what happened next, they moved, Bob Johnson got the expansion franchise, the self named “Bobcats” were born. The Charlotte “Hornets” held the 13th slot in the 1996 NBA draft. They selected 17-year-old Kobe Bryant from Philadelphia and then trade him to the Lakers for Vlade Divac. With the announcement that the Jordan owned Bobcats were revisiting their history, Kobe decided it would be fun to throw his own nostalgia into the mix.

I wonder if that hat was in the next round of memorabilia items his mom was planning to auction…

Too soon?