Hornets surprise former star Muggsy Bogues with plan to retire his jersey

Scott Fowler, The Charlotte Observer on Oct 27, 2026

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Muggsy Bogues thought he was going to videotape an interview for an upcoming kids’ basketball event.

The Charlotte Hornets, though, had something different in mind.

On Saturday morning, the Hornets invited Bogues to Spectrum Center and surprised him with the news that he will become just the third player in franchise history to have his jersey retired, joining Dell Curry and Bobby Phills.

“It means the world to me,” Bogues, 61, said in a phone interview about the jersey retirement, which the Hornets made public Tuesday. “Knowing what the city of Charlotte means to me, and the franchise, and how supportive people have been here for all these years — I’m just floored that people think of me in this light.”

The shortest NBA player ever at 5-foot-3, Bogues remains the Hornets’ all-time leader in both assists and steals. An original member of the Hornets, he played for Charlotte in its first 10 NBA seasons starting in 1988 and has been an ambassador for the team for many years since then.

Bogues’ No. 1 jersey will be raised to the rafters during a halftime ceremony on Feb. 11, 2027, when the Hornets host the Milwaukee Bucks. There it will join the jerseys of Phills (No. 13) and Curry (No. 30).

While Michael Jordan never retired anyone’s number during his years as the Hornets owner, Hornets’ co-chairmen Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin have now retired two. Curry’s number was retired in March 2026.

No. 1 has been one of the Hornets’ starriest jersey numbers, as it was also previously worn by Charlotte players like LaMelo Ball, Baron Davis, Kemba Walker, Stephen Jackson and Malik Monk. In the rafters, though, it will only belong to Bogues.

“Honoring the players who helped build this franchise is an important part of our commitment to Hornets history,” Schnall and Plotkin said in a statement. “Muggsy was here from the beginning and played with a heart, toughness and competitive spirit that made him a fan favorite. At 5-foot-3, he overcame obstacles throughout his career and proved he belonged among the best players in the world. He became a role model for generations, showing young people that their size doesn’t have to limit what they can achieve.”

Formerly a star at Wake Forest, where he dazzled the ACC in the mid-1980s, Bogues was a first-round draft pick of the Washington NBA franchise. The Hornets then acquired him in the 1988 expansion draft.

In Charlotte, Bogues helped lead the Hornets to three 50-plus win campaigns and four playoff appearances, including the team’s first postseason series victory in 1993.

Bogues would eventually play 14 NBA seasons. His career assist-to-turnover ratio — 4.69 to 1 — still ranks as the best in NBA history among the top 100 all-time leaders in career assists. At 5-foot-3, he also somehow collected 39 blocked shots.

Along the way, Bogues became a cultural icon and a particular favorite of children. He was one of the co-stars of Jordan’s “Space Jam” movie. He also made an appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in an era where the Hornets’ purple and teal colors and a core of Larry Johnson, Alonzo Mourning, Curry and Bogues turned Charlotte into one of the NBA’s hottest teams.

Bogues has remained in the Queen City after his playing days were over. He once coached the WNBA team in Charlotte and remains actively involved in his charitable foundation. He also makes appearances and speeches both for the Hornets and for the NBA. Bogues’ wife and his three kids were all involved in Saturday’s surprise, arranging to be there when Bogues heard the news.

“They had a TV monitor there and they had me reading some community-type announcement stuff,” Bogues said. “And after I read it once, they said that was practice and to read it again.

“But the second time, as I’m going through it, there was a new part about ‘Help me celebrate raising my jersey to the rafters’ and I’m like, ‘What? What am I reading?’ My wife and two of my kids were already there, and then my other daughter who lives in Baltimore came walking in from around the corner and I realized that they had got me good. It was a surreal moment. I am so happy about it.”