Brandon Miller is coming in hot with takes this week.
Less than a week after the Charlotte Hornets’ No. 2 overall draft pick dubbed Los Angeles Clippers forward Paul George — not Michael Jordan or LeBron James — the greatest basketball player ever, Miller revealed his high expectations for his new squad.
“I can see the Charlotte Hornets in the NBA Finals next year,” Miller said in an interview with WCNC Charlotte. “Hopefully, we will get there and get the big trophy in the end.”
If Miller’s prophecy comes true, it’d be one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history.
The Hornets finished last season with the fourth-worst record in the NBA (27-55), which helped them land the No. 2 pick and Miller.
And, unlike Miller, oddsmakers give Charlotte little chance of making a title run.
The Hornets are +50,000, which is tied with four other teams for the worst odds in the league, to win the 2023-24 NBA title.
While a championship may not be coming to the Queen City any time soon, the Hornets have high hopes for Miller and their other potential star, LaMelo Ball.
Miller spoke highly of his new teammate and said the two have already bonded.
“He makes me feel like I’m at home,” Miller said of his new running mate to WCNC Charlotte. “I definitely look at him like a big brother now away from home. We have the same love, which is basketball and cars.
“I think he needs to let me drive one of his cars.”
But Hornets fans weren’t so welcoming after the franchise took the Alabama forward over the G-League Ignite’s Scoot Henderson.
WFNZ’s Kyle Bailey tweeted that Miller was booed by the crowd at the team’s draft party at Spectrum Center.
“Then Charlotte took him #2 overall and the crowd was stunned,” Bailey said.
Miller has been a controversial figure this year as he was embroiled in a scandal with the Crimson Tide.
The 20-year-old was accused of bringing former teammate Darius Miles a gun that was later used in a fatal shooting.
Miller was never charged nor suspended, but his role in the incident had been a focus heading into the draft.
In March, when he spoke to reporters for the first time about the shooting, Miller called the incident “heartbreaking.”