GOATs, grief and glory: Reliving Charlotte’s Top 10 sports moments of 2023

Almost a year ago to the day, Charlotte Observer columnist Scott Fowler wrote that 2023 would be the “Year of the W” — the year of wins, Wilks and “most spectacularly of all, Wembanyama.”

With 2023 now behind us, we can assert with certainty:

That didn’t happen.

Wins have been sparse. Charlotte native Steve Wilks wasn’t hired to succeed Matt Rhule as the Carolina Panthers’ head coach. And the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes, by the slimmest of slim margins, were won not by the Charlotte Hornets but by the San Antonio Spurs.

Still, 2023 was an important and remarkable year nonetheless, one encapsulated by another letter: G.

As in:

GOATs — Greatest of All Time(rs).

Grief.

And (glimpses of) glory.

The Observer’s sports department voted on the city of Charlotte’s most impactful sports moments of 2023. Relive the Year of the G in the section below. The moments are listed in chronological order — not by order of agreed prominence — but feel free to share your rankings with us via email at sports@charlotteobserver.com or in the comments below.

Founding Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson passes away at 86

Jerry Richardson, the former pro wide receiver turned self-made millionaire turned beloved owner who brought the NFL to the Carolinas, passed away on March 1. Fowler was first to report the news on Twitter, and the rest of the Observer team pitched in to document the life and complicated legacy left behind by Richardson, who sold the team under pressure in 2018 to David Tepper. As Fowler recounted in his authoritative obituary on one of Charlotte’s most important figures: “The Panthers were the Carolinas’ team, but for many years, they belonged to Richardson. He made millions in the business world in the food business, but it was football that made him happy.”

Date: March 1, 2023

Panthers select Bryce Young as overall No. 1 pick in NFL Draft

If you’re a Charlotte sports fan at all, you remember that April night well. The anticipation. The rain. The exuberance of Tepper, who claimed the Panthers’ No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft — quarterback Bryce Young — would bring “Super Bowl” glory to the Carolinas. It was a beautiful night in Bank of America Stadium (as well as in Kansas City, where The Observer also was in attendance), replete with hopes for a fresh start after a string of losing since the downfall and departure(s) of the franchise’s most memorable quarterback Cam Newton. The print headline in The Observer the next day: “THE NIGHT IS YOUNG.”

Date: April 27, 2023

Charlotte Hornets miss on Victor Wembanyama, select Brandon Miller in NBA Draft

Rod Boone, the Hornets beat writer for The Charlotte Observer, put it succinctly on that May evening of the 2023 NBA Draft lottery in Chicago: “There’s no reason for the Charlotte Hornets’ brass to sign up for those French lessons after all.” The Hornets missed out on the prospect of a generation when they landed the No. 2 pick in the draft, narrowly missing out on No. 1 and presumptive pick Wembanyama. Charlotte ultimately ended up choosing Brandon Miller at the No. 2 spot — a move that was greeted by mixed reactions within the Hornet fan base — and Miller has, for what it’s worth, had a good rookie season to date. But the question is understandably inescapable for any sports fan reaching for sports hope in this part of the state: What if Charlotte got Wembanyama?

Date of NBA Draft lottery: May 16, 2023

NASCAR resurrects abandoned, forgotten North Wilkesboro Speedway

By the time NASCAR Cup Series cars zoomed around the historic North Wilkesboro Speedway pavement, so much had already been said. Gov. Roy Cooper spoke about the racetrack’s resurrection and what it meant to North Carolina. So did a family native to Wilkes County, whose lives once centered around operating the analogue scoreboard at the track. So did Dale Earnhardt Jr., the sport’s most ardent protector and purveyor of history, and who initiated Wilkesboro’s rebirth after NASCAR left the track in abandoned disrepair for 27 years. So for real: What else was there to be said after the actual race? We’ll let Kyle Larson, winner of the historic All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro, speak for himself: “All the legends basically have raced here. So to be on the winner’s list is special.”

Date: May 21, 2023

Michael Jordan sells majority ownership stake in Charlotte Hornets

In June, Michael Jordan sold a large part of his stake in the Charlotte Hornets to a group that included former Hornets minority owner Gabe Plotkin, former Atlanta Hawks minority owner Rick Schnall, rapper J. Cole and country music singer-songwriter Eric Church. The sell was a huge deal. Jordan brought a cache and a superstardom that only he could provide to the Hornets as owner when he purchased a majority stake in 2010, and his sale meant the end of an era for a whole bunch of entities — for himself, one of the greatest athletes of all time; for the Hornets, the maligned franchise he oversaw; and for the NBA, the league that he helped make global and with which he’s so long been intertwined. (It’s worth noting, too, that Jordan’s sale left the NBA void of any Black majority owners.) His departure was met with mixed reviews — sad to see a North Carolina legend leave but happy for a more hopeful future — and it left Jordan with a whole bunch of money, as despite the Hornets’ troubles, the franchise’s value ascended as sharply as the NBA’s has over the past decade.

Date of news first breaking: June 16, 2023

LaMelo Ball signs contract extension with Charlotte Hornets

LaMelo Ball, the Hornets’ darling passer and smiley shooter and one-time All-Star, agreed this offseason to a six-year, $260 million contract with the Charlotte Hornets. The move was by far the richest contract in Charlotte team sports history and a sign that the Hornets’ future rests in the hands of Ball, who’s only 22.

Date of agreement in principle: July 7, 2023

Charlotte FC defeats Lionel Messi to earn historic playoff berth, but those results still not enough

The three most consequential moments of Charlotte FC’s season — for the die-hard team supporters as well as the casual soccer fans — were all connected by the team’s final regular-season game of 2023. That October night, Lionel Messi, the greatest soccer player in the world, visited Charlotte and sent an excitement through uptown that was palpable. Better yet, Charlotte FC defeated him and the surging Inter Miami — and did so to ultimately clinch a spot into the Major League Soccer postseason for the first time in team history. As magical as that night was, it wasn’t enough to keep around head coach Christian Lattanzio. His successor, Dean Smith, was named and introduced earlier this month.

Date of momentous Charlotte FC win over Inter Miami: Oct. 22, 2023

Caitlin Clark graces Charlotte with her greatness

Caitlin Clark, the Iowa sharpshooter who has captured the attention and imagination of college basketball fans everywhere, might one day join Jordan and Messi as one of the “Greatest of All Time.” Charlotte got a glimpse of the amazing Clark experience in November, when she scored 44 points in a winning effort over No. 8 Virginia Tech in front of over 15,000 fans in uptown’s Spectrum Center. “It was incredible,” Fowler wrote of the experience, “for a sport on the rise and the superstar helping to lift it even higher.”

Date: Nov. 10, 2023

Miles Bridges returns to Charlotte Hornets

In November, forward Miles Bridges returned to the court for the Charlotte Hornets. He had to miss the first 10 games of the season as part of an NBA-levied suspension due to his role in a domestic violence incident involving the mother of his children.

The Hornets said in November they are “comfortable” with Bridges being part of the team “based on our current understanding of the facts of the recent allegations.” Said Bridges of his return: “I know a lot of people feel a way about me being back, and I understand that, and like I said before, I have to gain their trust back. ... I feel like if I can get us some more wins, I feel like people’s perspective will change a little bit on me.”

Date of return: Nov. 18, 2023

Carolina Panthers fire Frank Reich less than a season into tenure

Grandeur expectations and romantic visions of victory accompanied the hiring of Frank Reich, the first starting quarterback in Carolina Panthers history with a previous winning record as a head coach. Those dreams came undone, though. And quickly. Reich was let go in late November with the team limping to a 1-10 start, making him one of only 32 head coaches in league history who’ve lasted a season or less with a team. The Observer was the only outlet to reach Reich after his firing, and Reich was professional and gracious to Panthers owner Tepper in his interview. When asked if he planned to retire from coaching afterward, he wasn’t definitive, but he did offer this: “This is probably the final chapter of my NFL journey.” The Panthers will be in the market to hire their third coach since 2019 — not including interims — this offseason.

Date: Nov. 27, 2023

Honorable mentions

It pains all of us that some of these moments were left on the cutting room floor, but that just speaks to the consequential year Charlotte and the greater Carolinas bore witness to in 2023. The events that narrowly missed making this year’s list include:

• The tragic loss of Anton Walkes, the Charlotte FC defender whose death in a boating accident in South Florida reverberated across leagues and oceans

• The passing of Billy Packer, the Charlotte resident and longtime voice of ACC basketball

• The difficult introductory season of Biff Poggi, the Charlotte 49ers’ fun, fearless and sleeveless head coach

• Year 1 of the ACC headquarters in Charlotte, after the conference announced the move in September 2022

• And the retirement of Kevin Harvick, the Charlotte resident and one of NASCAR’s all-time great drivers whose legacy won’t soon fade