How This Trade Impacts Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets have some tough decisions to make this offseason. They need help at center and should aggressively pursue an upgrade at the position. Miles Bridges is entering restricted free agency, while P.J. Washington is extension eligible. Moving on from Gordon Hayward’s contract would be ideal.
This deal with the New Orleans Pelicans doesn’t answer all of those questions, but they could have the best young duo in the NBA in LaMelo Ball and Zion Williamson. Imagine the damage those two could do in the open court, as Ball is a maestro with the ball in his hands and Williamson is a violent, above-the-rim finisher.
The injury concerns are legitimate, as they already have to worry about Hayward. The risk is high, but the reward could be too much to pass up. A star duo is what every team seeks and the Hornets could create one with this deal.
This deal would also open up playing time for James Bouknight, a 2021 first-round pick that was buried on the bench during his rookie season. Jaxson Hayes also provides the Hornets with someone that could be the missing piece for them in the middle of their lineup.
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Surrendering all of those draft picks would be a massive risk, so they could try and put some protections on them in case things don’t go well. However, the allure of a Ball/Williamson duo may be too much for the Hornets to turn down
