The Charlotte Hornets made two big moves prior to the start of the 2020-21 NBA season: executing a sign-and-trade for Gordon Hayward with the Boston Celtics and drafting LaMelo Ball third overall in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Now, the Hornets are 27-25 and currently very much in the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference currently as the 6-seed. Things are tight in the Eastern Conference playoff wise and there are still plenty of teams fighting for the last few spots, but it seems like the Hornets will be in the playoff mix, the only question is whether or not they will avoid the play-in games.
Unfortunately for the Hornets, they may be trending towards having to fight for their playoff lives in a one game, winner take all play-in game due to LaMelo Ball currently being out with a fractured wrist and Gordon Hayward being out with a foot injury that will keep him sidelined through the month of April.
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Whether or not the Hornets make the playoffs, they are still a young team on the rise and will be looking to make some moves in the offseason to set themselves up for even more long-term success than they already potentially have.
It seems crazy to think that they would ever entertain the idea of trading Gordon Hayward, especially after they just acquired him prior to the start of this season, but he has been injury prone over the years and they could get a lot of value in return for him right now.
Could the Hornets look to trade their veteran forward in the offseason and try to capitalize off of his value now? Let’s take a look at a hypothetical offseason trade proposal presented by Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley that would send Hayward and a young talent to the Golden State Warriors for quite a return in talent.
