I've switched from Nova Launcher (after their aquisition) to lawnchair launcher and it's been a good replacement for me. Similar feature set and I'm not really missing much, so I'm fine with the slow development.
Did nova become worse somehow after the acquisition? I've been using nova for many years and I haven't noticed any negative changes. Is it just an ideological thing?
It's just an ideological thing or out of fear what the future brings. The new owner is a data mining company, so I was expecting updates with ads or tracking any day. Glad to hear it hasn't happened though!
I switched to Olauncher (F-Droid) half a year ago. It's a minimalistic clutter and distraction free launcher that feels like finally getting the control back over your smartphone usage.
Kiss launcher is great for one handed. Discreet launcher gives you optional pulldown favorites from the top, and all apps from the bottom.
Both support hiding apps and icon packs