Do the Charlotte Hornets have cap space in 2026-27?

Real payroll (contracts plus dead money) is $148.4M, which is $16.6M under the $165.0M cap. What erases the room is $58.7M in cap holds for their own free agents and unsigned picks; those count against the cap only, never the tax or aprons. Renouncing every free-agent hold (keeping draft picks) would open $7.1M of room, at the cost of their Bird rights.

So the Hornets are "over the cap" only in the cap-room sense. Like most of the league they build through exceptions (their mid-level if their tier allows one, minimums) and Bird rights to re-sign their own players.