2004 NBA expansion draft
The expansion draft for the construction of the Charlotte Bobcats, the 30th NBA franchise, was held on June 22, 2004. The Bobcats selected 19 players from other teams' unprotected players lists and constructed their squad for, what was regarded, at the time, as their inaugural season.
This was the second time an expansion draft was held for the Charlotte NBA franchise, known since the 2014–15 season as the Hornets. The original team relocated to New Orleans prior to the 2002–03 season, retaining the Hornets name until, when it was renamed the New Orleans Pelicans. The Charlotte franchise was suspended for two seasons, before an expansion team known as the Bobcats was established in 2004. It was renamed the Hornets prior to the 2014–15 season after the Pelicans relinquished the rights to the Hornets name.
Key
Selections
| Player | Pos. | Nationality | Previous team | NBA years | Career with the franchise | Ref. |
| F | Washington Wizards | 2 | ||||
| G | Golden State Warriors | 2 | — | |||
| C | Indiana Pacers | 3 | – | |||
| G | New Orleans Hornets | 1 | — | |||
| C | Los Angeles Clippers | 3 | — | |||
| G/F | Portland Trail Blazers | 1 | — | |||
| F | Chicago Bulls | 4 | — | |||
| G | Seattle SuperSonics | 1 | — | |||
| F | Boston Celtics | 1 | — | |||
| F | Cleveland Cavaliers | 1 | ||||
| C | Orlando Magic | 1 | — | |||
| G/F | Utah Jazz | 1 | — | |||
| F/C | Los Angeles Lakers | 2 | ||||
| G | New Jersey Nets | 2 | ||||
| F | Memphis Grizzlies | 1 | ||||
| G | Denver Nuggets | 3 | — | |||
| + | F | Sacramento Kings | 3 | – | ||
| F/C | Phoenix Suns | 6 | ||||
| F/C | Miami Heat | 3 | — |
Trades
Pre-draft trades
Prior to the day of the draft, the following trades were made and resulted in exchanges of future draft picks between the teams, along with a particular agreement in the expansion draft.- The Charlotte Bobcats acquired the second pick in the 2004 Draft and agreed to select Predrag Drobnjak in the expansion draft from the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for the fourth and 33rd picks in the 2004 Draft.
- The Charlotte Bobcats agreed to select Jahidi White from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for a future first-round pick and cash considerations.
Draft-day trades
- The Charlotte Bobcats traded Aleksandar Pavlović to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for a lottery-protected first-round pick. This pick was ultimately executed as the #22 pick in the 2007 draft, with which the Bobcats selected Jared Dudley.
- The Charlotte Bobcats traded Zaza Pachulia to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for the 45th pick in the 2004 Draft.