Shams: LaMelo to TWolves, Naz to Hornets

[Celtics2021]

Charlotte could get a $40.7 million TPE out of this??!!

I don?t think so unless there is another part that I missed where they are sending enough salary to aggregate with Josh Green such that they absorb Naz Reid through that instead of using the LaMelo salary.

[Who]

Sending Ball to Minnesota also creates a massive $40.7 million trade exception, reportedly the largest in league history.

That slot could be used to bring in someone like Jaylen Brown, who was dangled in trade talks with Milwaukee before the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Brown knows Hornets coach Charles Lee from their championship season together in 2023-24.

They are hopeful ...

From an article in the Charlotte Observer.

[Who]

Charlotte's bigs

So they drafted Steinbach and already had Mousa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner. Now they have Naz Reid. I thought they would play Naz at PF but the article in the Charlotte Observer seemed to think Naz would play behind Diabate. So that would remove Kalkbrenner and Steinbach from the rotation. Naz to open up their offense as a stretch 5.

[Donoghus]

Okay, so Coby's back.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
24s
Free agent guard Coby White intends to sign a three-year, $74 million deal to return to the Charlotte Hornets, sources tell ESPN. White was a major priority for the Hornets and now steps into a new starting role in the backcourt./quote]

[Who]

Sources told The Observer earlier Thursday morning that multiple teams - including the Timberwolves and the Toronto Raptors - were in the mix to acquire Ball, the Hornets? polarizing but undeniably popular star point guard.

The Observer also previously reported that Ball had the desire to stay in Charlotte for the long-term, as he's said publicly for years.

Since entering the league in 2020, it's been a struggle for Ball to stay healthy as he?s dealt with ankle issues.

The trade paves the way for Coby White, a North Carolina native and former UNC star, to step into the starting point guard role next year. White is an unrestricted free agent and Jeff Peterson, the Hornets? president of basketball operations, has mentioned he?s ?a priority? re-signing candidate.

-------------------

Haha, here is one from the comment section

Well, at least Charlotte drivers and pedestrians will be safer now...

And a 2nd one

Great move plus car insurance rates will decline with one less terrible driver on our roads.

Another fan reaction

I'm sure Jeff Petersen did his due diligence, and the "disappointing" return probably tells us a lot about how the league values Lamelo Ball. Whether we like it or not, his value beyond selling a lot of jerseys was more limited than most people in Charlotte realized.

Yeah, the injuries probably killed his trade value.

As season ticket holders, we are ELATED!! Hats off to the front office.

Definitely polarizing ...

They shoulda traded Ball years ago, he isnt the answer and his ceiling for the team has been hit. Too flashy, plays ZERO defense and takes too much time off

LaMelo Is one of the only reasons I started watching NBA games again

Bridges played 95% of the games over the last 5 years, Lemelo less than 50%. I would rather have a B player who was available every day than an A player who played half the games.

--------

The Charlotte Observer has another article where the journalist is saying "they are all for [this trade]".

Does all that sound like the Hornets got jobbed?

Only if you haven?t watched The LaMelo Ball Experience up close for the past six years, as I have.

Melo made it into the highlight reel every night, but I don?t think the Hornets were ever going to win big with him. In Ball?s six NBA seasons in the Queen City, Charlotte never made the playoffs even once. And I don?t trust his injury history. Mainly due to problematic ankles, Ball had missed at least 35 games per season for the previous three years prior to this one.

Again the injuries. Lack of team success as well.

And then there was that crazy play-in game vs. Miami in April, which Ball gave us a crash course on all he has to offer. He won the game with an enormous contested layup through rush-hour traffic. He also took 31 shots to get to 30 points, made an awful turnover late and fouled a guy on a three-point shot at a critical moment.

But for the Hornets, The LaMelo Ball Experience is over. The show has finally closed. And that?s absolutely fine. The team will be built around Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel now, with a whole lot of other good parts that can be placed somewhere (and maybe 1-2 more high-profile parts to come). This was a trade worth making, for a team that ultimately wants more than Ball was ever going to provide.

[Celtics2021]

Sending Ball to Minnesota also creates a massive $40.7 million trade exception, reportedly the largest in league history.

That slot could be used to bring in someone like Jaylen Brown, who was dangled in trade talks with Milwaukee before the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Brown knows Hornets coach Charles Lee from their championship season together in 2023-24.

They are hopeful ...

From an article in the Charlotte Observer.

I mean, that is not how trade exceptions work.  $40.7 is not enough to add Jaylen Brown.  And I do not believe they have such an exception to begin with.

[Who]

Okay, so Coby's back.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
24s
Free agent guard Coby White intends to sign a three-year, $74 million deal to return to the Charlotte Hornets, sources tell ESPN. White was a major priority for the Hornets and now steps into a new starting role in the backcourt.

A bit pricey .... again, like Dosunmu, a good proxy for Pritchard's value on his next deal.

$20-25mil a year is where I have Pritchard.

-----------

So the Hornets will have Coby White as their starting PG, Tre Mann as their backup PG, and their rookie Christian Anderson as their 3rd stringer challenging Tre Mann for minutes.

Looks like they are set at PG.

[Who]

Sending Ball to Minnesota also creates a massive $40.7 million trade exception, reportedly the largest in league history.

That slot could be used to bring in someone like Jaylen Brown, who was dangled in trade talks with Milwaukee before the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Brown knows Hornets coach Charles Lee from their championship season together in 2023-24.

They are hopeful ...

From an article in the Charlotte Observer.

I mean, that is not how trade exceptions work.  $40.7 is not enough to add Jaylen Brown.  And I do not believe they have such an exception to begin with.

I wonder if the trade exception is enough to get Ja Morant.

I also wonder whether CHA would have any interest in Morant given they likely just traded LaMelo because of his injury history, indifferent defense, bad shot selection which are all characteristics of Morant.

Keep Coby White in that 6th man role he played so well.

-----------

Morant is at $39.5mil salary although he jumps up to $42mil at the start of the summer window. So they would only have a few days to do this if that were the goal.

[Celtics2021]

Sending Ball to Minnesota also creates a massive $40.7 million trade exception, reportedly the largest in league history.

That slot could be used to bring in someone like Jaylen Brown, who was dangled in trade talks with Milwaukee before the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Brown knows Hornets coach Charles Lee from their championship season together in 2023-24.

They are hopeful ...

From an article in the Charlotte Observer.

I mean, that is not how trade exceptions work.  $40.7 is not enough to add Jaylen Brown.  And I do not believe they have such an exception to begin with.

I wonder if the trade exception is enough to get Ja Morant.

I also wonder whether CHA would have any interest in Morant given they likely just traded LaMelo because of his injury history, indifferent defense, bad shot selection which are all characteristics of Morant.

Keep Coby White in that 6th man role he played so well.

-----------

Morant is at $39.5mil salary although he jumps up to $42mil at the start of the summer window. So they would only have a few days to do this if that were the goal.

It is not. Because this is attached to the Randle deal, which is a July 1st deal, it would not work.

[Who]

Sending Ball to Minnesota also creates a massive $40.7 million trade exception, reportedly the largest in league history.

That slot could be used to bring in someone like Jaylen Brown, who was dangled in trade talks with Milwaukee before the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Brown knows Hornets coach Charles Lee from their championship season together in 2023-24.

They are hopeful ...

From an article in the Charlotte Observer.

I mean, that is not how trade exceptions work.  $40.7 is not enough to add Jaylen Brown.  And I do not believe they have such an exception to begin with.

I wonder if the trade exception is enough to get Ja Morant.

I also wonder whether CHA would have any interest in Morant given they likely just traded LaMelo because of his injury history, indifferent defense, bad shot selection which are all characteristics of Morant.

Keep Coby White in that 6th man role he played so well.

-----------

Morant is at $39.5mil salary although he jumps up to $42mil at the start of the summer window. So they would only have a few days to do this if that were the goal.

It is not. Because this is attached to the Randle deal, which is a July 1st deal, it would not work.

Ah okay. Good to know. Thank you.

[Goldstar88]

Okay, so Coby's back.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
24s
Free agent guard Coby White intends to sign a three-year, $74 million deal to return to the Charlotte Hornets, sources tell ESPN. White was a major priority for the Hornets and now steps into a new starting role in the backcourt.

A bit pricey .... again, like Dosunmu, a good proxy for Pritchard's value on his next deal.

$20-25mil a year is where I have Pritchard.

-----------

So the Hornets will have Coby White as their starting PG, Tre Mann as their backup PG, and their rookie Christian Anderson as their 3rd stringer challenging Tre Mann for minutes.

Looks like they are set at PG.

Colby White is a substantial downgrade. There is a reason Chicago let him go. He is more of a role player. LaMelo was the main reason Charlotte had success last year. I think the Hornets take a step back next year.

[Who]

Okay, so Coby's back.

Shams Charania
@ShamsCharania
?
24s
Free agent guard Coby White intends to sign a three-year, $74 million deal to return to the Charlotte Hornets, sources tell ESPN. White was a major priority for the Hornets and now steps into a new starting role in the backcourt.

A bit pricey .... again, like Dosunmu, a good proxy for Pritchard's value on his next deal.

$20-25mil a year is where I have Pritchard.

-----------

So the Hornets will have Coby White as their starting PG, Tre Mann as their backup PG, and their rookie Christian Anderson as their 3rd stringer challenging Tre Mann for minutes.

Looks like they are set at PG.

Colby White is a substantial downgrade. There is a reason Chicago let him go. He is more of a role player. LaMelo was the main reason Charlotte had success last year. I think the Hornets take a step back next year.

Yep. Coby is a scoring combo guard rather than a passer.

LaMelo's playmaking is what made everything work in Charlotte. I do not remember the exact stat but I remember seeing a number where Charlotte were a middle of the pack 3pt volume team when LaMelo was off the court compared to top of the league when LaMelo was on the court. He was the orchestrator. He made everything work. It doesn't work without him.

Now they just got a bunch of scorers. B Miller doesn't pass the ball. Miles Bridges doesn't pass much. Coby White is an average passing SG and subpar passing PG. Knueppel is their only good passer and is good rather than great. Everyone will be looking to "get theirs". No more team ball. Not without LaMelo.

[Moranis]

The injuries are real issue for Lamelo, but Charlotte has been better, sometimes significantly better, with Lamelo on the floor verse off it every year since he was a rookie.  His on off diff per 100 the last 2 seasons were 6.6 and 6.3.   When he plays, the Hornets are a lot better.  I just don't understand this move for them. By all accounts Ball was happy and well liked as well.

[Goldstar88]

The injuries are real issue for Lamelo, but Charlotte has been better, sometimes significantly better, with Lamelo on the floor verse off it every year since he was a rookie.  His on off diff per 100 the last 2 seasons were 6.6 and 6.3.   When he plays, the Hornets are a lot better.  I just don't understand this move for them. By all accounts Ball was happy and well liked as well.

Exactly. They were so much better with him on the court. I know there are injury concerns, but LaMelo is only 24 years old and he did play in 72 games last year. Really bad move by Charlotte, IMO. They should have moved off of Bridges and Grant Williams, not Ball.

[lbgreen33]

Who knows, Maybe they are making room for Temetrius Jamel Morant. Someone is going to give Ja a chance and I don't think there is anyway he goes back to Memphis.