The first big trade of the NBA offseason was completed on Wednesday between the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets. The Mavericks acquired Christian Wood from Houston, sending out Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, and Marquese Chriss and the No. 26 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
This is attention-grabbing for a few reasons, the first of which being how cheap the Mavericks seemingly acquired a starting center for. The second is that it changes the center landscape around the league.
Wood was a potential target for the Charlotte Hornets as well. Charlotte desperately needs to add a center to the mix to upgrade and round out their roster. Seeing what it ultimately cost to land Wood, it is a little bit surprising that they did not get in on the bidding, as they have the No. 15 overall pick as a trade chip.
Could they have felt that Wood was not worth that high of a pick? That is possible, as they are reportedly focusing their efforts on Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers.
“The Charlotte Hornets have long been considered a potential landing spot for Turner, and the Hornets have communicated around the league a willingness to move the No. 15 pick, sources said.”
LATEST NBA DRAFT NEWS AND TRADE RUMORS: This Trade Sends Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner To Charlotte Hornets
Turner would fill the Hornets’ biggest need of improving their defense more than Wood. The Indiana Pacers big man is arguably the best interior defender in the NBA with his penchant for blocking shots and making things difficult around the rim for opponents.
Charlotte hired Kenny Atkinson as their next head coach, who beat out Mike D’Antoni for the job. That is another indication that they are serious about improving defensively, as Atkinson is known for the work that he does on that end of the court.
LATEST NBA DRAFT NEWS AND TRADE RUMORS: This Trade Sends Indiana Pacers’ Myles Turner To Charlotte Hornets
Myles Turner would fit well into that and the Charlotte Hornets will likely continue pursuing him until the clock strikes zero on the 15th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
