The Charlotte Hornets start NBA Cup play Friday night in Washington, and I don't think it's crazy to believe they can win their group.

Charlotte has Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, and Washington in East Group C. There are some good teams in there, but nobody the Hornets should look at as an automatic loss.

They also know these teams pretty well. Charlotte went 11-4 against the other four teams in the group last season, including 4-0 against Washington and 3-1 against both Atlanta and Chicago. Boston was the only one to win the season series against the Hornets.

A lot has changed since then. Charlotte traded LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges; Washington added Trae Young and Anthony Davis; and Boston added Paul George. I'm not expecting last year's results to carry over just because the names on the front of the jerseys are the same.

Still, I like Charlotte's chances more than I did when I first looked at the group.

It Starts With Washington

Friday is one the Hornets need to win.

They just beat Washington 110-103 on Monday, so this will be the second time they've seen the Wizards in four days. Washington has more talent than it did last season, but if Charlotte wants to seriously talk about winning this group, this isn't one it can give away.

After that comes Boston at home on Nov. 6, followed by a two-week break before Charlotte goes to Atlanta on Nov. 20. The Hornets finish group play against Chicago at home on Nov. 25.

I don't think they have to sweep those four games. Beat Washington and Chicago, and then find a way to get one against Boston or Atlanta. That gets Charlotte to 3-1, and depending on what happens elsewhere in the group, that could be enough.

Point differential is part of the tie-breaking process, so even the margin in these games could eventually matter.

The Hornets Should Be Better by the End of Group Play

The other reason I like Charlotte's chances is that we still haven't seen this team close to full strength.

The Hornets are 3-2 without Kon Knueppel, Coby White, and Grant Williams playing a game. Brandon Miller has had to handle a big part of the scoring, and Charlotte has still managed to get off to a decent start.

We finally got some good news on Knueppel Thursday. The Hornets assigned him to the Greensboro Swarm for practice, which is at least a sign that he's getting closer after missing the start of the season with a hamstring injury.

There's still no official date for his return, so I'm not going to pencil him in against Boston or anybody else. But the NBA's preview of East Group C listed Knueppel as someone expected back during group play.

If that's the case, the Hornets team that plays Atlanta on Nov. 20 could be better than the one that opens Cup play Friday.

Atlanta is probably the game I would worry about the most. The Hawks won 46 games last season, brought back most of their team, and get Charlotte at home. Boston is still Boston, but at least the Hornets get that one in Charlotte.

Chicago and Washington are the two I think the Hornets have to get. Go 2-0 there, split Boston and Atlanta, and see what happens.

I wouldn't have picked Charlotte to win this group before the season. After watching the first five games and looking at who they have to beat, I think they have a shot.

We'll know a lot more after Friday night.