Charlotte Hornets Receive: Andre Drummond ($28.75M 2020-21 Salary)

Cleveland Cavaliers Receive: Terry Rozier ($18.9M), Cody Zeller ($15.4M), LAC 2021 2nd Round Pick, BKN 2021 2nd Round Pick

Trading for Andre Drummond would prove to be very beneficial to the Charlotte Hornets for a handful of reasons. Not to mention, Charlotte is a team who put in a lot of effort to improve their team this offseason and look to make a push to make the NBA Playoffs in the Eastern Conference.

First off, trading Terry Rozier, after just signing him last offseason, would benefit the Hornets because they just drafted LaMelo Ball No. 3 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft to be the future point guard of the franchise and Terry Rozier may not be happy in Charlotte anymore. On Nov. 21, Terry Rozier posted this cryptic video on his Instagram story, insinuating that he may be done with Charlotte and want to move on.

Cody Zeller, while he has improved over the years with Charlotte and has been a reliable big man, does not seem like he can contribute long-term to the Hornets, whereas Andre Drummond can. Drummond is a better defender, rebounder and scorer than Zeller, giving the Hornets a stronger and more reliable center to pair with their young core. 

Andre Drummond also fits the mold the Charlotte Hornets like to have in their big men. Over the years, the Hornets have played a more traditional style of offense using their big guys in the low-post and more of a rebounding threat than a scoring threat, which would make Drummond even better. Being able to thrive on second-chance points and offensive rebounds would open up a world of possibilities for Andre Drummond and might be just what he needs to catch the league’s attention once again.

Last year’s first-round pick, P.J. Washington, has all the makings of being a great player for the Hornets for years to come and after bringing in Gordon Hayward in free agency, the Hornets are on track for success, but need to improve down low. Charlotte also just drafted big man Vernon Carey from Duke in the second-round.

Drummond is more of a back-to-the-basket type of center and is a monster in the paint, which is why bringing him in would prove to be even more worthwhile. Having two bruisers who can rebound and be threats in the low-post can open up this Charlotte offense even more for Devonte’ Graham and Gordon Hayward this upcoming season.