Devonte’ Graham
Devonte’ Graham developed well during his time with the Charlotte Hornets. He has put together two very good seasons with the Hornets, including an impressive 18.2 points and 7.5 assists per game during the 2019-20 season. He is an excellent 3-point shooter, but with LaMelo Ball being selected in the 2020 NBA Draft, the writing was on the wall.
Charlotte had no real interest in retaining Graham, as they will be turning their backcourt over to Ball. But, they were still able to land a future first-round pick in exchange for him from the New Orleans Pelicans, which is part of why he lands on this list.
Graham is a solid player that will bring much-needed 3-point shooting to the Pelicans lineup. He is a solid playmaker and is worth the four-year, $47.3 million contract he signed. However, his limitations defensively for a team that has struggled to stop anyone and the overarching price it took to get him, is what lands him on this list.
As mentioned earlier, the Pelicans sent a future first-round pick to Charlotte in a sign-and-trade for him. Not only that, New Orleans allowed a better player in Lonzo Ball to leave earlier in free agency, agreeing to a sign-and-trade with the Chicago Bulls.
READ MORE: Predictions for NBA Trade Rumors: Simmons, Lillard, Hield, Ingles, Siakam
Essentially, the Pelicans traded Lonzo Ball and a future first-round pick for Graham, Tomas Satoransky, Garrett Temple and a future second-round pick. After clearing cap space by attaching another first-round pick to Eric Bledsoe, Graham being the biggest acquisition into that space is underwhelming.
