<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-mason-plumlee-free-agency-contract-2025');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets reunite with former center on $3.6 million contract in free agency');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Mason-Plumlee.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images.</figcaption></figure><h1>Hornets reunite with former center on $3.6 million contract in free agency</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-30T18:54:50-07:00">June 30th, 6:54pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-30T18:54:50-07:00">June 30th, 6:54pm</time><address><a>Josh Davis</a>Josh Davis is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints with a focus on MLB. As the founder and creator of OutOfSightSports, Josh spearheads the development and expansion of an engaging social media platform, with a core focus on Twitter/X. A passionate sports writer, Josh is dedicated to delivering compelling content that connects fans and fuels vibrant sports conversations. His vision is to craft stories so vivid that fans feel like they’re standing at the plate or on the field.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets are bringing back a familiar face in Mason Plumlee, agreeing to a one-year, $3.6 million contract in free agency. The move signals a strategic step to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/3-reasons-why-hornets-must-pursue-deandre-ayton-after-blazers-buyout">bolster the Hornets’ front court depth</a> following the departure of Mark Williams, who was traded to the Phoenix Suns on draft night.</p><p>Plumlee, a 12-year NBA veteran center, previously spent two productive seasons with Charlotte from 2021 to 2023. During that stint, he averaged 9.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game across 129 appearances — strong numbers that defined his value as a reliable interior presence. His efficient play and high basketball IQ made him a solid fit for the system, and the reunion gives the team a steady option as they look to navigate roster changes.</p><p>ESPN’s Shams Charania took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to <a href="https://x.com/ShamsCharania/status/1939856868920238145" rel="noopener">announce</a> the move.</p><p>“Free agent center Mason Plumlee has agreed to a one-year, $3.6 million deal with the Charlotte Hornets, sources tell ESPN. The Hornets get some frontcourt depth, completing a contract with Mark Bartelstein of @PrioritySports for Plumlee’s 13th NBA season.”</p><p>The return of Plumlee adds veteran experience to a young Charlotte roster still building its identity. The move fills a void at center, especially with Nick Richards now in Phoenix and Williams no longer part of the franchise. For a team with playoff hopes, bringing back a known contributor with chemistry in the locker room and experience in the system is a low-risk, high-upside play.</p><p>Last season, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/phoenix-suns/suns-news-add-recent-clippers-big-man-in-free-agency">Plumlee spent the year with the Phoenix Suns</a>, where he played 74 games and averaged 4.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists while shooting nearly 62% from the field. Though his role diminished as the season went on, he did start 21 games and brought consistent energy and rebounding — traits the Hornets could certainly use. His track record shows he can still be effective, particularly in a secondary role.</p><p>Fans will remember Plumlee’s standout 2022-23 campaign with the Hornets, where his stats spoke for themselves — 12.2 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game on nearly 67% shooting from the floor. His post passing and rim protection brought much-needed stability to Charlotte’s interior defense during a challenging stretch.</p><p>This signing may not make front-page headlines across the league, but it’s exactly the kind of move smart franchises make. For Charlotte, bringing back a respected veteran who understands the culture and scheme offers immediate value, and may help mentor younger bigs as the Hornets aim to climb the Eastern Conference standings in the 2025-2026 season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets reunite with former center on $3.6 million contract in free agency

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/3-reasons-why-hornets-must-pursue-deandre-ayton-after-blazers-buyout');   ga('set', 'title', '3 reasons why Hornets must pursue Deandre Ayton after Blazers buyout');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/3-reasons-why-Hornets-must-pursue-Deandre-Ayton-after-Blazers-buyout.jpg"></figure><h1>3 reasons why Hornets must pursue Deandre Ayton after Blazers buyout</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-30T09:57:04-07:00">June 30th, 9:57am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-30T09:57:04-07:00">June 30th, 9:57am</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After trading <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/grading-hornets-jazz-trade-collin-sexton-jusuf-nurkic">Jusuf Nurkic in exchange for Colin Sexton</a>, the Charlotte Hornets are lacking a veteran center heading into the offseason. Their perfect replacement could have just recently hit the open market with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/blazers-news-deandre-ayton-becomes-free-agent-center-portland-contract-buyout">Deandre Ayton’s recent buyout</a> from the Portland Trailblazers.</p><p>Ayton averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds in 40 games for the Blazers last year. There’s a logjam of bigs in Portland with <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/draft/NBA_2024.html" rel="noopener">2024 lottery pick</a> Donovan Clingan and 2025 first-round pick Yang Hansen, so Ayton’s buyout was inevitable. Now that he’s available, Charlotte could put a flyer out to go get the former No. 1 pick in the 2018 Draft for a few reasons.</p><h2><b>Deandre Ayton fills the Hornets’ need for size</b></h2><p>The Charlotte Hornets traded away both Mark Williams and Nurkic early this offseason before free agency officially started. This leaves a few obvious holes in their depth at the five.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/ncaa-basketball/creighton-basketball-news-bluejays-celebrate-hornets-draft-ryan-kalkbrenner">Drafting Ryan Kalkbrenner</a> in the second round helps plug in one of the spots, but adding a veteran, starting-caliber big man still makes sense for the Hornets. Ayton brings two-way potential and can step outside and hit perimeter shots in a league that values stretch bigs.</p><p>Pairing up with LaMelo Ball in screen and rolls could give the Hornets a nice one-two punch with more options than usual. He can dive to the basket as a lob threat or pop out to hit that 15-footer or deeper depending on the coverage.</p><p>On the defensive end, he can move his fit and be a solid weakside helper. With Moussa Diabate and Kalkbrenner—two centers with little to no NBA experience, both Ayton and the Hornets would benefit here.</p><h2><b>Deandre Ayton is perfect fit alongside LaMelo Ball, rest of Hornets’ core</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/LaMelo-Ball-against-Deandre-Ayton.jpg"><figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Again, on offense, Ball and Ayton’s chemistry could be built up in a matter of minutes. Ayton has a soft touch around the rim. Plus, Ayton is only 26 years old.</p><p>Pairing that up with the core of Ball, Brandon Miller, and Kon Knueppel would benefit everyone. There’s enough young talent on this team to potentially make a major jump next season if they play their cards right this offseason.</p><p>Getting Ayton onboard would jumpstart their rebuild and attempt to sneak into a play-in game. By his age, Ayton should be entering his prime soon, and he just spent two years in a place where he couldn’t find his footing.</p><p>In fact, Portland drafted two first-round-caliber talents at center in back-to-back years. He should be motivated to step into a new situation and prove his worth again.</p><h2><b>Deandre Ayton is affordable both financially and in calculated risks</b></h2><p>The Hornets have done a solid job shedding contracts and drafting before free agency really kicks off, giving them flexibility to take a few swings. Deandre Ayton could be the first one. The Blazers paid him $35 million for his buyout, so he’ll likely take a cheaper deal to land with a team.</p><p>Ayton will likely attract multiple suitors, like the Los Angeles Lakers and others. Hornets general manager Jeff Peterson has more wiggle room since they’re around $25 million under the first apron.</p><p>The Hornets can overpay Ayton for a one-year contract and see how things pan out with him alongside the rest of their core. Consider it more of a trial run as the other young pieces develop. Best-case scenario: the Hornets slide into that Play-In spot and show massive improvements across the board. Worst case? They remain the same and draft another big in 2026.</p><p>The Hornets are in the fray of an Eastern Conference that is constantly fluctuating. The top-three teams aren’t secure in those spots. And it’s as wide open as it’s ever been.</p><p>The spots at the bottom are open too given that everyone’s making moves to try and compete for something. With the addition of Ayton, the Hornets could find themselves with one of the better offseasons in recent franchise memory.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

3 reasons why Hornets must pursue Deandre Ayton after Blazers buyout

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/grading-hornets-jazz-trade-collin-sexton-jusuf-nurkic');   ga('set', 'title', 'Grading Hornets-Jazz trade involving Collin Sexton, Jusuf Nurkic');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Grading-Hornets-Jazz-trade-involving-Collin-Sexton-Jusuf-Nurkic.jpg"></figure><h1>Grading Hornets-Jazz trade involving Collin Sexton, Jusuf Nurkic</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T20:42:39-07:00">June 29th, 8:42pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T20:42:39-07:00">June 29th, 8:42pm</time><address><a>Kris Pursiainen</a>Kris Pursiainen is an Associate Editor for all sports based in the NJ/NYC area. Kris brings several years of experience reporting on and writing about professional teams to the table. With experience all over the country as a New York Knicks, New York Jets, New York Mets, Super Bowl LVIII, and Big East beat reporter, Kris has been breaking news and reporting on the NBA, NFL, MLB, and college basketball landscapes for years. Kris is a proud graduate of Fordham University.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/hornets-news-charlotte-acquires-collin-sexton-jazz-jusuf-nurkic">Utah Jazz traded veteran guard Collin Sexton</a> to the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday. The Jazz, who included a second-round pick in the 2030 NBA Draft, received veteran center Jusuf Nurkic in return.</p><p>Both Sexton and Nurkic are entering contract years. Making the money work was easy, with both set to make around $19 million next year.</p><p>It had been rumored that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/orlando-magic/magic-rumors-insider-orlando-jordan-poole-collin-sexton-trades">Sexton would be available in trades</a> this offseason. Utah drafted guards Keyonte George and Brice Sensabaugh in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft. The next year, they selected guard Isaiah Collier in the first round. On Wednesday, they drafted guard Walter Clayton Jr., the fourth first-round pick they’ve used on a guard in three drafts.</p><p>As more of their young talent approaches paydays, more experienced players like Jordan Clarkson and Sexton become natural choices for the ‘chopping block.’ What type of moves could the Jazz make that involve one or two of these guards and set their core up for success?</p><p>They opted to send Sexton to the Eastern Conference for a big man. The Jazz only had incoming fourth-year center Walker Kessler and Kyle Filipowski, fresh off his rookie campaign, at center. Both players represent a balance of now and later, already able to impact winning basketball but with room to grow. Nurkic, an 11-year NBA veteran, could help both reach their potential.</p><p>The Hornets <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/draft-grade-hornets-new-rookie-kon-knueppel">drafted 6’7″ guard Kon Knueppel</a> with the fourth pick in Wednesday night’s draft. He joined guards LaMelo Ball and recent first-round draft pick Nick Smith Jr. on the roster, making Sexton the fourth under contract next season with 24-year-old guard Tre Mann entering restricted free agency. Was this the best the Hornets could have done to replace him? Was trading Nurkic days after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/phoenix-suns/suns-news-phoenix-trades-for-mark-williams-drafts-khaman-maluach-moments-apart">trading Mark Williams</a> the right move?</p><h2><b>Hornets get smaller, score big in Nurkic-Sexton swap</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Collin-Sexton-Jusuf-Nurkic-Jazz-Hornets.jpg"><figcaption>Jeffrey Swinger-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>A 26-year-old guard, after the second-straight season in which he was excellent on offense, being traded <i>away</i> is a tough sell. Sexton averaged 18.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game while making 48% of his field goals this past year. He led the Jazz in scoring for the second-straight year.</p><p>Sexton turned the ball over 2.5 times on average. But his 40.6% conversion rate on his 4.3 3-point attempts per game was a career-best.</p><p>The advanced analytics on Sexton’s past two seasons indicate his offensive impact is legitimate. His Estimated Offensive Plus-Minus rating of +1.5 represented greater offensive impact than 87% of NBA players that year. His +3.0 mark in the 2023-24 season was in the 95th percentile of <a href="https://dunksandthrees.com/player/1629012" rel="noopener">that season’s O-EPM ratings</a>, per Dunks and Threes.</p><p>At face value, parting ways with Nurkic is a tough but potentially necessary sacrifice to acquire a player like Sexton. His high-octane offensive capabilities could both complement Ball’s playmaking well and help the team maintain its offense when Ball sits. Receiving a second-round draft selection several years down the road tilts this trade enough in the Hornets’ direction to consider it a ‘success’ for them on-paper.</p><p>Sexton and Ball may struggle on defense, especially without a defensive anchor of a big supporting them. The Hornets traded both Nurkic and Williams, the two centers they had on their roster, within days of each other. This makes the team’s need for a center dire. Nurkic, who just had the <a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/player/2732#tab-defense_rebounding" rel="noopener">highest defensive-rebounding percentage</a> of his career last year, could have been more valuable to the Hornets than other teams.</p><p>Center play, however, has typically been the most easily replaceable position in the modern era. The Hornets bet on the center play they can acquire in free agency, coupled with incoming fourth-year small-ball center Moussa Diabate, being enough for next year.</p><p><b>Hornets trade grade</b><b>: A-</b></p><p>Sexton will need a new deal after his opening campaign with Charlotte. Locking in a 27-year-old Sexton for ‘the prime years’ of his career is worth giving up a steady hand in Nurkic for a team like the Hornets, searching for perennial playoff appearances.</p><h2><b>Jazz add rebounding, experience via veteran Jusuf Nurkic</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Jusuf-Nurkic-Jazz-Hornets-trade.jpg"><figcaption>Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Nurkic played 51 games last season between his time with the Hornets and the Phoenix Suns. His <a href="https://dunksandthrees.com/player/203994/historical" rel="noopener">81st percentile Defensive-EPM</a> of +0.8 is indicative of a ‘still got it’ factor with regard to his ability to anchor a defense. His +2.5 rating on that end of the court from the season before was better than 95% of the NBA last year.</p><p>Availability is beginning to come into question with Nurkic, though. Some were part of the trade process and not representative of his health, but he missed 33 games total last season. He played 76 the year before, a nice figure, which unfortunately stands out as an outlier.</p><p>Nurkic played just 52 games in 2023 and 56 in 2022. That’s after he played a combined 45 in the two years before, 2019-21, because of troubles with leg injuries. When he’s on the court, though, his value is clear. He rebounded 31.8% of opposing team’s misses when he was on defense, a career-best rate. That was in the 99th percentile among all NBA players in the 2025 season.</p><p>From 2019 to 2024, Nurkic’s O-EPM had been in the 69th percentile or better – except for 2021, a 59th percentile output. Last season, his -1.9 O-EPM rating was in the 31st percentile that year. Especially after <i>trading</i> Sexton, the Jazz don’t have a playmaker on the level of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, or LaMelo Ball yet. Will they be able to scheme an offense that facilitates a bounce back season?</p><p><b>Jazz trade grade: C-</b></p><p>Head coach Will Hardy prioritizes the optimization of his talent. Will the team’s young guards have developed enough to allow the addition of Nurkic to pay dividends? Or will the Bosnian big man’s contributions be unfortunately overlooked as the team’s offense has a Sexton-sized hole in it?</p><p>Whether or not Nurkic is a key contributor in Utah, it feels like they could have gotten more for Sexton. Was being so set on trading him even the right way to handle his pending free agency? If the team is interested in starting to win some games, the dynamo scoring guard now on the Hornets may have been able to help.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Grading Hornets-Jazz trade involving Collin Sexton, Jusuf Nurkic

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/nba-rumors-hornets-collin-sexton-trade-comes-chris-paul-revelation');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Hornets’ Collin Sexton trade comes after Chris Paul revelation');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Collin-Sexton-and-Chris-Paul.jpg"><figcaption>Christopher Creveling-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Hornets’ Collin Sexton trade comes after Chris Paul revelation</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T13:02:49-07:00">June 29th, 1:02pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T13:02:49-07:00">June 29th, 1:02pm</time><address><a>Jaren Kawada</a>Jaren Kawada is a former full-time sports bettor and is now a NFL, College Football and Betting Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. Kawada was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, after graduating from Butler University with a B.A. in sports media. Aside from football, Kawada is an avid combat sports and basketball bettor.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets continued their offseason activity by orchestrating another trade, this time <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/hornets-news-charlotte-acquires-collin-sexton-jazz-jusuf-nurkic">acquiring combo guard Collin Sexton from the Utah Jazz</a>. While the trade came as a surprise, further reports suggest that the move occurred after the team realized they would be out of the running for veteran free agent Chris Paul.</p><p>The Hornets were one of several teams interested in Paul, but believe the 40-year-old <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/chris-pauls-looming-free-agency-with?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=167117215&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">wants to sign with a West Coast team</a> in free agency, according to Mark Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line. Charlotte remains interested in adding a quality backup point guard, but acquired Sexton to further its backcourt depth.</p><p>“The Stein Line has likewise learned that the Charlotte Hornets also planned to make a run at Paul — who grew up in North Carolina — but have all but conceded internally that the former Wake Forest star will almost certainly decide to stay on the West Coast if he returns for a 21st NBA season,” Stein and Fischer reported. “Charlotte is known to be pursuing veteran ball handlers to back up All-Star point guard LaMelo Ball and is perceived to be one of the potential landing spots for Cleveland’s Ty Jerome.”</p><p>Paul averaged a career-low 8.8 points, but a stellar 7.4 assists in just 28 minutes per game in 2024-2025. Perhaps most impressively, he started all 82 games for just the second time in his 20-year-long career.</p><p>Sexton, 26, provides much more scoring but less facilitating than Paul. The former lottery pick put up 18.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game in 2024-2025.</p><h2><b>Collin Sexton trade adds to Hornets’ loaded backcourt</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Collin-Sexton.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Coming off another disappointing, injury-riddled season, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-rumors-charlotte-targeting-move-lamelo-bell-love">Hornets are reportedly entering free agency with a focus</a> on adding guard depth. However, they continue to address that issue before the official window opens.</p><p>Sexton is the fourth guard Charlotte has added early in the offseason. The team’s previous deal, which <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/suns-news-phoenix-trades-for-mark-williams-drafts-khaman-maluach-moments-apart">sent Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns</a>, brought Vasilije Micic back to the organization. The Hornets also notably added Kon Knueppel and Sion James in the 2025 NBA Draft.</p><p>The slew of incoming guards turned heads, considering the team’s two best players — LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller — already run the backcourt. By trading Williams and Jusuf Nurkic, Charlotte is also noticeably thin up front. The Hornets have yet to add a true backup point guard, but their free agency might now be more focused on replacing their lost big men.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Hornets’ Collin Sexton trade comes after Chris Paul revelation

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/hornets-news-charlotte-acquires-collin-sexton-jazz-jusuf-nurkic');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets acquire Collin Sexton from Jazz for Jusuf Nurkic');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Collin-Sexton.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Hornets acquire Collin Sexton from Jazz for Jusuf Nurkic</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T12:27:05-07:00">June 29th, 12:27pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T12:53:05-07:00">June 29th, 12:53pm</time><address><a>Troy Finnegan</a>Troy Finnegan is a Senior Editor and College Sports Lead at ClutchPoints. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023 with a degree in journalism and minors in communications and sports media, as well as a critical sports studies certificate. He has had a passion for sports his entire life, and enjoys covering and writing about all sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/jazz-news-ace-bailey-officially-lands-summer-league">Utah Jazz cleared up some space in their crowded backcourt</a> on Sunday, and the Charlotte Hornets were the primary beneficiary. Just a day before free agency opens up, the Jazz sent guard Collin Sexton to the Hornets <a href="https://x.com/ShamsCharania/status/1939403635428835822" rel="noopener">in exchange for center</a> Jusuf Nurkic, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><p>The Hornets will also get a second-round pick in 2030 as a part of the deal.</p><p>On paper, this deal makes sense for a Jazz team that has a lot of young guards on the roster, all of whom will want minutes. Keyonte George has been a big part of the Utah rotation over the last two years, and Isaiah Collier showed plenty of promise as a rookie in 2024-25. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/jazz-news-utah-trades-up-with-wizards-to-land-florida-hero-walter-clayton-jr">Jazz also just drafted Florida star Walter Clayton Jr.</a> in the first round of the NBA Draft, and this deal frees up minutes for him as a rookie as well.</p><p>On the Hornets side, Charlotte gets out of a bad, expiring deal in Nurkic that the Jazz can afford to pay out this season. The Hornets also get an explosive guard in Sexton who can light up the stat sheet as a secondary scorer, potentially coming off the bench for them.</p><p>The downside for the Hornets in this trade is that they lose yet another big man after trading Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns on draft night. They did draft Creighton star Ryan Kalkbrenner early in the second round, and he is now the only true center on the roster heading into next season.</p><p>Sexton has been in the purgatory of Utah over the last few seasons, but he has still been able to out up solid numbers for a team that hasn’t been all that competitive. In 2024-25, the Alabama product scored 18.4 points per game while shooting better than 40% from 3-point range, so he will add some much-needed scoring punch to this Hornets roster.</p><p>Nurkic played in a reduced role last season after being traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Hornets, but he can still be a quality player in spot minutes on the offensive end.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets acquire Collin Sexton from Jazz for Jusuf Nurkic

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-rumors-charlotte-targeting-move-lamelo-bell-love');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets rumors: Charlotte targeting move LaMelo Ball will love');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/LaMelo-Ball.jpg"><figcaption>Scott Kinser-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Hornets rumors: Charlotte targeting move LaMelo Ball will love</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T09:35:12-07:00">June 29th, 9:35am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T15:34:59-07:00">June 29th, 3:34pm</time><address><a>Jaren Kawada</a>Jaren Kawada is a former full-time sports bettor and is now a NFL, College Football and Betting Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. Kawada was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, after graduating from Butler University with a B.A. in sports media. Aside from football, Kawada is an avid combat sports and basketball bettor.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/thunders-championship-rebuild-inspire-hornets">Charlotte Hornets are still rebuilding</a> but looking to be active in the 2025 NBA free agency period. While still building around star point guard LaMelo Ball, the Hornets are reportedly looking to add another veteran ball handler in the offseason.</p><p>While the Hornets do not have a ton of cap space, they plan to use the space they have <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/more-of-the-nba-free-agency-and-trade?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=392205&amp;post_id=167070775&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=false&amp;r=39f60&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="noopener">on a veteran backup point guard</a>, per NBA insider Jake Fischer on The Stein Line. Charlotte potentially has a void at the position with Tre Mann hitting unrestricted free agency once the window officially opens.</p><p>“In addition to teams like Sacramento, Dallas and the LA Clippers, whose needs at that position have been a daily talking point, league sources say Charlotte has been searching for veteran ball handlers to back up LaMelo Ball,” Fischer wrote.</p><p>The Hornets desperately need backcourt depth in the 2025-2026 season, as their current rotation has been constantly plagued by injuries. Ball, in particular, has not played more than 47 games since the 2021-2022 season.</p><p>Without re-signing Mann, the Hornets’ current best bet is budding third-year guard Nick Smith Jr. Smith, a 2023 first-round pick, started 27 games in 2024-2025 and averaged a career-high 9.9 points and 2.4 assists per game.</p><p>Chris Paul, Elfrid Payton, Russell Westbrook, Dennis Schroder and Tyus Jones headline the list of available options. However, as Fischer noted, the Hornets are not the only team that will be attacking the point guard market once free agency begins.</p><h2><b>Hornets’ ongoing injury issues</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/LaMelo-Ball-of-the-Charlotte-Hornets.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>While the Hornets have not had much luck lately, health has become an increasingly concerning issue. Charlotte had just five players — Smith, Miles Bridges, Seth Curry, Josh Green, Moussa Diabate and Tidjane Salaun — who played more than 60 games in 2024-2025.</p><p>The Hornets’ top three stars — Ball, Bridges and Brandon Miller — have all struggled with injuries since Miller joined the team in 2023. Ball and Miller, the team’s two leading scorers, have played just 23 games together since the latter joined the roster two years ago.</p><p>With injuries becoming a growing concern within the franchise, the Hornets have prioritized depth ahead of the 2025-2026 season. Charlotte took Duke guard Kon Knueppel with its first-round draft pick, while <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/suns-news-phoenix-trades-for-mark-williams-drafts-khaman-maluach-moments-apart">trading Mark Williams for Vasilije Micic and Liam McNeeley</a>. Micic averaged 6.2 assists in 30 games with the Hornets in 2023-2024.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets rumors: Charlotte targeting move LaMelo Ball will love

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-rumors-ty-jerome-suitors-expected-cavs-exit');   ga('set', 'title', 'NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Ty-Jerome.jpg"><figcaption>David Richard-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-29T08:15:26-07:00">June 29th, 8:15am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-29T08:15:26-07:00">June 29th, 8:15am</time><address><a>Troy Finnegan</a>Troy Finnegan is a Senior Editor and College Sports Lead at ClutchPoints. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023 with a degree in journalism and minors in communications and sports media, as well as a critical sports studies certificate. He has had a passion for sports his entire life, and enjoys covering and writing about all sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>This NBA free agency cycle doesn’t have the stars that it sometimes does, but there are still plenty of quality players who can make an impact in a playoff series that will be hitting the open market. Ty Jerome, who played some of the best basketball of his career at the end of the 2024-25 regular season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, is one of the names on that list.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/ranking-3-best-ty-jerome-free-agency-destinations-leaves-cavaliers">Jerome is hitting the open market</a> as an unrestricted free agent this summer, and he should have a pretty solid market for his services. However, the Cavs likely don’t have any room for him on the roster or in the rotation for him after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cavs-news-acquiring-lonzo-ball-trade-bulls">trading for Lonzo Ball from the Chicago Bulls</a>.</p><p>However, there will be plenty of teams that would love to have Jerome’s size and shooting ability in the backcourt off the bench. The Detroit Pistons, Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic and Houston Rockets are four <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/siegels-scoop-latest-warriors-jonathan-kuminga-nba-free-agency-intel">teams that could make a run</a> at the Virginia product, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.</p><p>“After trading for Ball, it looks increasingly unlikely that the Cleveland Cavaliers Sixth Man of the Year finalist Ty Jerome will return in free agency,” Siegel wrote. “Plenty of teams will hold interest in potentially signing Jerome using their full mid-level exception in free agency. Keep an eye on teams like the Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, and Sacramento Kings as potential landing spots for Jerome. These four teams have a key need for backcourt depth.”</p><p>The Charlotte Hornets and Memphis Grizzlies are <a href="https://marcstein.substack.com/p/sunday-best-lots-more-of-the-latest" rel="noopener">two teams that are also interested</a> in Jerome, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line.</p><p>“Charlotte and Memphis are two teams that keep coming up as likely suitors for Ty Jerome, who is now regarded as a lock to leave Cleveland to find the deal he is known to be seeking that starts at (or at worst adjacent) to the full $14.1 million midlevel exception,” Stein wrote.</p><p>Zach Lowe also mentioned the Golden State Warriors as a potential landing spot for Jerome after he played one season there in 2022-23.</p><p>Jerome struggled at times in the Cavs’ second-round loss to the Indiana Pacers in the playoffs, but he was being a bit overtasked due to the injuries in Cleveland, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/darius-garland-toe-surgery-announced-amid-cavs-trade-rumors">particularly to Darius Garland’s toe.</a> If one of these teams in free agency is able to scale his role back down, he could be a big pickup this offseason.</p><p>The 27-year old played in 70 games this season, scoring a career-high 12.5 points per game while shooting an incredible 43.9% from 3-point range. While it won’t make the biggest headlines, a deal for Jerome is something that could play a major factor over the next few seasons.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

NBA rumors: Ty Jerome suitors lining up amid expected Cavs exit

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/charlotte-hornets-2025-nba-draft-grades-every-pick');   ga('set', 'title', 'Charlotte Hornets 2025 NBA Draft grades for every pick');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Charlotte-Hornets-2025-NBA-Draft-grades-for-every-pick.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Charlotte Hornets 2025 NBA Draft grades for every pick</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-28T19:15:56-07:00">June 28th, 7:15pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-28T19:15:56-07:00">June 28th, 7:15pm</time><address><a>Zachary Howell</a>Zachary Howell is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints focusing on creating premier MLB content. He is a big fan of the Yankees, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Syracuse Orange. In his free time, he likes to be outside or read.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets finished the season with a 19-63 record. LaMelo Ball was an All-Star candidate in the Eastern Conference before <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-lamelo-ball-undergoes-multiple-season-ending-injury-procedures">an injury ended the Hornets star’s season</a>. Charlotte fell one spot in the NBA Draft lottery to No. 4 and entered the event with three picks. They retained and used all three picks on Kon Knueppel, Sion James, and Ryan Kalkbrenner.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-fans-react-to-suns-wild-mark-williams-trade-after-previous-fail">Hornets also made a trade during the first round, sending Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns</a>. They received the No. 29 pick and a first round pick in 2029 in return. Charlotte used the pick to select UConn forward Liam McNeeley, adding him to their 2025 draft haul. The Hornets will welcome all four rookies to the team this year and they will all play in Summer League.</p><p>As a whole, the NBA Draft went quite well for Charlotte. After the Hornets tried to trade Williams to the Lakers before the trade deadline, a move involving him was inevitable. However, getting two first round picks in return is a great haul. Now it is up to general manager Jeff Peterson to build a competitive team around LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller.</p><p>Here are our grades for all four of the Hornets’ 2025 NBA Draft picks.</p><h2>Kon Knueppel(No. 4): A</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Duke-basketball-star-Kon-Knueppel-walking-off-court-at-Final-Four.jpg"><figcaption>Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Hornets had two options at No. 4 after the NBA Draft lottery concluded. They were split between Duke’s Kon Knueppel and Baylor’s V.J. Edgecombe before the drama surrounding Ace Bailey began. The Rutgers star declined his workout with Charlotte and the Philadelphia 76ers, scaring both teams away from him. At the end of the day, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/live-2025-nba-draft-grades-every-1st-round-pick-trade">the Hornets picked the safe option in Knueppel</a>.</p><p>Knueppel is one of the best pure shooters in this class alongside Washington Wizards rookie Tre Johnson. During his time at Duke, he displayed the ability to play a supporting role alongside a star without getting lost in the shuffle. That will be his role playing alongside Ball, and he should be able to take advantage of the wide-open 3-point looks the Hornets’ star will produce.</p><h2>Liam McNeeley(N0. 29): B+</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/UConns-Liam-McNeeley.jpg"><figcaption>Zachary Taft-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>This grade is as much for what the Hornets got in exchange for Williams as the player they chose with the pick. Turning one first round pick into two is impressive by itself. However, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-mark-williams-dalton-knecht-trade-shockingly-rescinded">Williams’ trade value for the Hornets took a hit after he failed his physical</a> and Charlotte still flipped him successfully.</p><p>McNeeley had an up-and-down season in Bobby Hurley’s program. Despite a rough showing, the forward has a game that translates better to the NBA than college basketball. If nothing else, he is a bona-fide sniper from 3-point range. His size should also make his transition a smooth one, but his defense will have to improve for him to get real rotation minutes.</p><h2>Sion James(N0. 33): B+</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/North-Carolina-vs-Duke-1.jpg"><figcaption>Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Hornets had two back-to-back early picks in the second round and used the first on another Duke player. However Sion James and Knueppel’s games could not be more different. The former is a much better defender, ball-handler, and passer than the No. 4 pick. However, his defense will get him minutes for Charles Lee early on in his career.</p><p>James’ defensive upside was too much to ignore. His season at Duke saw him guard the opponent’s best guard in all of the Blue Devils’ games. At his peak, James could become a great point-of attack defender to help improve a Hornets defense that was near the bottom of the league last season.</p><p>There is already a player in the league that he could strive to be: Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/ncaa-basketball/duke-basketball-news-cooper-flagg-grabs-attention-huge-stat-line-vs-nc-state">James had his moments offensively at Duke</a>, but he will make his money on the defensive end.</p><h2>Ryan Kalkbrenner(No. 34): B+</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Kalkbrenner-pregame.jpg"><figcaption>Katie Stratman-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/2025-nba-mock-draft-5-0-76ers-hornets-ace-bailey-destiny-latest-intel">Ryan Kalkbrenner was mocked as a first round pick by Clutchpoints’ Brett Siegel</a>. As he slipped into the second round, the former Creighton big man’s value kept rising, and the Hornets snapped him up in the second round. After trading Williams away to Phoenix, Charlotte found themselves with a big hole in the middle of the floor.</p><p>Kalkbrenner fills the gap easily and has a skillset that has a lot of potential growth as he develops. He shot 34% from 3-point range in his senior season and was the Big East Defensive Player of the Year in all four of his collegiate seasons. He excels as a lob-catcher, music to Ball and Knueppel’s ears. If his defense translates, Lee can funnel guards and wings towards him on that end of the floor.</p><p>All in all, the Hornets walk away from the 2025 Draft as one of its biggest winners. They are one of many teams that could take advantage of a wide-open Eastern Conference next season. The health of Ball and Miller will go a long way in determining just how serious the team is as a threat.</p><p>If they put together healthy campaigns, their rookies are all high-floor players that can help them win games immediately.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Charlotte Hornets 2025 NBA Draft grades for every pick

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-kon-knueppel-duke-unexpected-question');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets’ Kon Knueppel hints at Duke plan after unexpected question');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IMG_1724.jpeg"><figcaption>Bred Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Hornets’ Kon Knueppel hints at Duke plan after unexpected question</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-26T18:38:20-07:00">June 26th, 6:38pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-26T18:39:14-07:00">June 26th, 6:39pm</time><address><a>Abdullah Imran</a>Abdullah Imran works as an Associate Editor for All Sports at ClutchPoints. He’s been a sports fan his entire life and enjoys writing about every sport. He has spent three years in sports journalism and loves analyzing games. In his free time, he very much enjoys binge-watching shows and playing video games.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The 2025 NBA Draft delivered several surprises, but few were as unexpected as the viral moment involving <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/draft-grade-hornets-new-rookie-kon-knueppel">Charlotte Hornets’ No. 4 overall pick, Kon Knueppel</a>, during his post-selection press conference.</p><p>The Duke freshman, a standout for the Blue Devils, was caught off guard when a reporter asked whether he planned to continue his education through correspondence classes now that he would be staying in North Carolina.</p><p>Knueppel <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1938390995076321781" rel="noopener">responded with hesitation</a>, saying, “Yeah, we’ll see. That’s not something I was really thinking about,” before reiterating, “But obviously being close there, that’s opened up a realm of possibility for me.”</p><p>The moment quickly gained attention online, with some noting the awkwardness of the question.</p><p>A five-star recruit from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Knueppel entered Duke as the No. 5 small forward and No. 18 overall player in the 2024 recruiting class, per 247Sports. In his only season at Duke, he played in 39 games, averaging 14.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He shot 47.9% from the field and an elite 40.6% from three-point range, establishing himself as one of the top shooters in college basketball.</p><p>Knueppel’s efforts helped Duke win the ACC Tournament, where he stepped up in the absence of teammate Cooper Flagg, earning ACC Tournament MVP honors. He was later named to the All-ACC Second Team, reinforcing his status as a top-tier talent.</p><p>The Hornets’ front office, led by Vice President Jeff Peterson, selected Knueppel as part of a strategy pivot focused on high-IQ, versatile players.</p><p>“He’s more than just a shooter,” Peterson noted. “He’s a versatile player.”</p><p>Despite considering trade-back options, the Hornets stayed at No. 4 to secure Knueppel, whom Peterson believes can be an immediate contributor.</p><p>In fact, Knueppel won’t be the only fresh face in Charlotte. Shortly after selecting him, the Hornets made a trade with the Phoenix Suns, acquiring UConn’s Liam McNeeley with the No. 29 pick and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-trade-proposal-for-deandre-ayton-finds-mark-williams-replacement">offloading center Mark Williams</a>, who had previously expressed frustration over a failed trade to the Lakers.</p><p>Knueppel projects as an efficient movement shooter, converting 47% of his open catch-and-shoot threes and 37% of contested attempts this season. Weighing 219 pounds, he combines strength and craft to finish at the rim and has shown flashes of playmaking and on-ball scoring. His basketball IQ and unselfish style, often opting for great shots over good ones, complement Charlotte’s core of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, especially after the team ranked last in offensive efficiency last season.</p><p>He also brings value on defense. While not the flashiest athlete, Knueppel uses positioning, effort, and anticipation to stay engaged and contribute across the board.</p><p>Financially, the pick is significant as well. As the No. 4 selection, Knueppel is expected to sign a four-year, $45.4 million contract, averaging $11.3 million per year, which is over 26 times higher than his NIL valuation at Duke.</p><p>With Kon Knueppel’s calm demeanor and polished skillset, Charlotte is signaling a new direction, one rooted in consistency, fit, and on-court intelligence, moving away from previous boom-or-bust picks.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets’ Kon Knueppel hints at Duke plan after unexpected question

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-trade-proposal-for-deandre-ayton-finds-mark-williams-replacement');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets’ trade proposal for Deandre Ayton finds Mark Williams replacement');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/755676827-hornets-trade-proposal-for-deandre-ayton-finds-mark-williams-replacement.jpg"></figure><h1>Hornets’ trade proposal for Deandre Ayton finds Mark Williams replacement</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-26T14:57:44-07:00">June 26th, 2:57pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-26T14:57:44-07:00">June 26th, 2:57pm</time><address><a>Bailey Bassett</a>Bailey Bassett is a sports writer from Denver, Colorado, covering major sports events and athlete backgrounds at ClutchPoints. He has experience covering and writing on high school, collegiate, and professional sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Portland Trail Blazers had a logjam at the center position long before they drafted yet another big man in the 2025 NBA Draft. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/blazers-news-portland-stuns-nba-world-with-7-foot-1-chinese-star-after-trade">selection of Yang Hansen</a> all but assures that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/portland-trail-blazers/nba-rumors-deandre-ayton-becoming-odd-man-out-for-blazers">the Trail Blazers have to trade Deandre Ayton.</a></p><p>One team that now has a hole at the five spot after draft day is the Charlotte Hornets. They <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/mark-williams-trade-grade-for-hornets-suns-deal">traded Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns</a>, which created a newfound need at center that a deal for Ayton could fill.</p><h2><b>Hornets’ possible trade package for Deandre Ayton</b></h2><p><b>Hornets receive:</b> Deandre Ayton</p><p><b>Trail Blazers receive:</b> Jusuf Nurkic, Grant Williams, 2025 NBA Draft pick 33, future second-round pick</p><p>The Hornets’ desire to trade Mark Williams was well-known. The team tried to trade the big man from Duke to the Los Angeles Lakers ahead of the trade deadline for Dalton Knecht, but the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-mark-williams-dalton-knecht-trade-shockingly-rescinded">Lakers shut down the agreed-upon deal when Williams failed his physical</a>. Williams put up impressive numbers upon returning to the Hornets.</p><p>He averaged 15.3 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. However, Williams has struggled with injuries throughout his career, and his relationship with the Hornets soured after they originally traded him. This go around, the Hornets dealt the center for two first-round picks.</p><p>Instead of replacing Williams, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/draft-grade-hornets-new-rookie-kon-knueppel">Hornets drafted two shooters in Kon Knueppel</a> and Liam McNeeley. Now, Jusuf Nurkic and Moussa Diabate are atop the depth chart at the five spot. Charlotte has a revamped roster, but they’d be smart to find an upgrade at center, and no post player is more attainable right now than Ayton.</p><p>The former first overall pick never quite lived up to expectations of being the top pick, but he is still a solid starting center. While he had a down year statistically last season while sharing more minutes than normal, he is a year removed from averaging 16.7 points and two years removed from averaging 18 points.</p><p>Ayton might not be done developing. He is still only 26 years old, so there is a chance that he could blossom even more with another change of scenery.</p><p>Questions about the Arizona big man’s motor have always been prevalent, but he does have a championship appearance to his name, and that playoff experience could be valuable for a team like the Hornets.</p><p>Additionally, Ayton should come relatively cheap. Circumstances somewhat force the Trail Blazers’ hand because they have five rotation-caliber centers on the roster, and Ayton is the clear odd man out.</p><h2><b>Trail Blazers’ logjam at center</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Deandre-Ayton-2-signals-against-the-Miami-Heat.jpg"><figcaption>Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>As mentioned previously, the Trail Blazers simply have too many centers. Ayton has started every game since becoming a Trail Blazer, but Donovan Clingan is the future of the position in Portland.</p><p>Robert Williams is also an elite defensive player when healthy, and Duop Reath is a serviceable backup who can knock down 3-point shots. The team has to have high hopes for Hansen, too, considering their insistence on drafting him despite how hard it will be for him to find minutes on this team.</p><p>Ayton and Williams seemed destined to be moved, but Ayton holds more trade value, even if he won’t go for a king’s ransom. This trade is underwhelming at first glance for the Trail Blazers, but considering they’ve been unable to move off of Ayton so far, there might not be much of a market for the Arizona product.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-grant-williams-helped-locker-room-potentially-serious-injury">Grant Williams is coming off ACL surgery</a>, but he is a prototypical 3-and-D role player with championship experience. Additionally, the Trail Blazers could draft one of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-rumors-charlotte-labeled-hotspot-for-trade-talks-in-round-2">best remaining players available in the 2025 NBA Draft</a> if they were to do this deal during the second round of draft day.</p><p>The Trail Blazers wouldn’t need Nurkic’s services, considering he is yet another center, so they could flip him in another trade for even more capital.</p><p>The Trail Blazers have made some questionable decisions so far this offseason. In addition to the selection of Hansen, which some considered a reach, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/jrue-holiday-trade-grades-for-celtics-blazers-after-stunning-deal">Trail Blazers traded Anfernee Simons for Jrue Holiday.</a> The ex-Boston Celtic is not only older than Simons and regressing, but he is playing on an undesirable <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/player/_/id/6316/jrue-holiday" rel="noopener">contract</a>.</p><p>This trade proposal, while underwhelming, would be a necessary step in the right direction for Portland.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Hornets’ trade proposal for Deandre Ayton finds Mark Williams replacement

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/mark-williams-trade-grade-for-hornets-suns-deal');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mark Williams trade grade for Hornets, Suns deal');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Hornets-center-Mark-Williams.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Nell Redmond-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Mark Williams trade grade for Hornets, Suns deal</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-26T13:29:39-07:00">June 26th, 1:29pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-26T13:29:39-07:00">June 26th, 1:29pm</time><address><a>Jerry Donatien</a>Jerry Donatien has worked for ClutchPoints since 2018. He is currently the company's Charlotte Hornets reporter, and he also does voiceovers on different sports stories. He worked the NBA All-Star weekend in 2019 and 2023, the NCAA woman's tournament, and he interned with Beasley Media group.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-fans-react-to-suns-wild-mark-williams-trade-after-previous-fail">traded Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns</a> for the 29th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft on Wednesday and a 2029 first-round pick. That 29th pick became Liam McNeeley. This deal comes after a failed trade before the 2025 trade deadline that almost saw Williams dealt to the Lakers in exchange for Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, and two future first-round picks.</p><p>Williams played nice with the media and the organization about the failed physical portion, but it seemed inevitable that he would be moved. With Day 1 of the draft complete, both teams have more work to do heading into day two.</p><h2><b>Hornets trade grade: A</b></h2><p>Projections had McNeeley going in the lottery, but getting him <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/draft-grade-hornets-new-rookie-kon-knueppel">along with Kon Knueppel solves the Hornets’ shooting woes</a> from a season ago. McNeeley <a href="https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/liam-mcneeley-1.html" rel="noopener">averaged 14.5 points</a> at UConn but only shot 31% from deep. That number could go up playing alongside a young core that already features impressive talent.</p><p>The real win of the trade is that general manager Jeff Peterson managed to get a future first-round pick in 2029. That gives Peterson and the Hornets seven total first-round picks for the next four drafts.</p><p>That creates a nice treasure trove of picks to continue gathering more prospects or trade them for an impact player. Teams like Oklahoma City use that strategy to cash in on talent and move them for future draft capital.</p><h2><b>Suns trade grade: C-</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Mark-Williams-Suns.jpg"><figcaption>Brian Westerholt-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Williams averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds last season while playing a career-high 44 games. He’s not a bad player, but the Phoenix Suns also drafted Duke freshman Khaman Maluach with the 10th pick in the draft as well.</p><p>Add that to Nick Richards and Bol Bol, and the Suns are deep at the center position. After <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/kevin-durant-trade-grades-rockets-suns-after-blockbuster-deal">moving on from Kevin Durant</a>, there still doesn’t seem to be a plan in place yet on how they transition.</p><p>With a roster with Devin Booker, Jalen Green, and Bradley Beal on it, they just created another logjam at another position. There’s plenty of offseason left to go, but they have a lot more questions then they do answers at this point in time. Filling out the rest of their roster at the other positions is priority number one for them.</p><p>The Hornets are building out their system the right way. The young talent added alongside LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller is appealing for potential veterans looking to help out a young core. Again, the offseason is far from over. More moves by teams all over the league will continue to be made for better or for worse.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mark Williams trade grade for Hornets, Suns deal

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-rumors-charlotte-labeled-hotspot-for-trade-talks-in-round-2');   ga('set', 'title', 'Hornets rumors: Charlotte labeled ‘hotspot’ for trade talks in Round 2');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Kon-Knueppel-looks-on-after-being-selected-as-the-fourth-pick-by-the-Charlotte-Hornets.jpg"><figcaption>© Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Hornets rumors: Charlotte labeled ‘hotspot’ for trade talks in Round 2</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-26T08:51:56-07:00">June 26th, 8:51am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-26T08:51:56-07:00">June 26th, 8:51am</time><address><a>Julian Ojeda</a>Julian Ojeda is an Orlando-based sports journalist with 3 years of professional writing under his belt, specializing in both NBA and NFL coverage. A devoted Orlando Magic fan, he deftly balances fervent fandom with insightful reporting, possessing a keen eye for compelling narratives.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Charlotte Hornets</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Charlotte Hornets enter the second night of the 2025 NBA Draft as a focal point for potential trade activity, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. With back-to-back selections at Nos. 33 and 34 overall, the Hornets are reportedly <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/45583425/2025-nba-round-2-mock-draft-best-available-players-picks-predictions" rel="noopener">drawing significant attention</a> from teams exploring deals ahead of Thursday night’s second round.</p><p>Givony labeled Charlotte “a hotspot for trade talks,” citing uncertainty over whether the Hornets are interested in adding additional rookies to a roster that already includes multiple young players. Charlotte opened the draft by <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/charlotte-hornets/hornets-news-kon-knueppel-asked-weird-questions-duke-going-no-4">selecting Duke guard Kon Knueppel with the No. 4 overall pick</a>. Later in the night, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-fans-react-to-suns-wild-mark-williams-trade-after-previous-fail">Hornets traded center Mark Williams to the Phoenix Suns</a> in exchange for the No. 29 pick — used to select UConn forward Liam McNeeley — and a 2029 first-round selection.</p><h2><b>Hornets hold picks 33 and 34 in 2025 NBA Draft as trade buzz builds amid frontcourt needs</b></h2><p>“The Hornets, with pick Nos. 33 and 34, will surely be a hotspot for trade talks throughout the day after adding two first-round picks to their roster in Kon Knueppel and Liam McNeeley,” Givony wrote. “Already sporting a fairly young roster, it’s not clear what Charlotte’s appetite will be for adding one or two more rookies.”</p><p>With Williams no longer in the frontcourt rotation, Charlotte is believed to be considering size with one of its remaining second-round picks. Givony noted that 7-foot prospects Maxime Raynaud and Ryan Kalkbrenner remain available, while versatile forwards such as Rasheer Fleming and Adou Thiero could also be in play.</p><p>The Hornets’ recent moves signal an ongoing reshaping of the roster under executive vice president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson. Whether Charlotte retains both second-round picks or uses them to facilitate a trade remains to be seen, but the team’s activity has drawn league-wide attention.</p><p>The second round of the 2025 NBA Draft resumes Thursday at 8 p.m. ET at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, and will be broadcast live on ESPN.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Charlotte
Hornets NEWS

Hornets News: Get the latest Charlotte Hornets news, scores, stats, standings, fantasy games, and more from ClutchPoints.

Latest Hornets News

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CharlotteHornets NEWS

Hornets News: Get the latest Charlotte Hornets news, scores, stats, standings, fantasy games, and more from ClutchPoints.

Latest Hornets News

Hornets reunite with former center on $3.6 million contract in free agency

3 reasons why Hornets must pursue Deandre Ayton after Blazers buyout

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NBA rumors: Hornets’ Collin Sexton trade comes after Chris Paul revelation

Hornets acquire Collin Sexton from Jazz for Jusuf Nurkic

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