The Hornets sought to upgrade their center at last week’s trade deadline, expressing interest in a number of big men on the trade market, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
As Fischer details, Charlotte was eyeing Andre Drummond, but couldn’t reach an agreement with the Cavaliers on a viable trade, then lost out to the Lakers on the buyout market. In addition to Drummond, the Hornets also expressed interest in veteran centers such as Myles Turner, Montrezl Harrell, and Richaun Holmes, sources tell Fischer.
A previous report indicated that the Pacers and Hornets discussed a trade involving Turner and P.J. Washington during the 2020 offseason, and Fischer says Charlotte revisited those talks at last week’s deadline, exploring a deal centered around Turner, Washington, and Cody Zeller‘s expiring contract. However, the team had no luck.
Having not addressed the center position via trade, the Hornets figure to be on the lookout for a big man this summer when Zeller’s and Bismack Biyombo‘s contracts expire, and Fischer identifies Holmes and Drummond as two players likely to be on Charlotte’s radar. Both players will be unrestricted free agents after the season.
Holmes is under contract at a bargain price ($5MM) for the rest of 2020/21, but could seek upwards of $20MM per year in free agency, according to Fischer. Meanwhile, league executives polled by Bleacher Report estimate that Drummond’s next deal could look something like Steven Adams‘ two-year, $35MM extension with New Orleans. The Hornets talked to Drummond following his buyout from Cleveland, and the 27-year-old was intrigued by the idea of playing with LaMelo Ball, says Fischer.
Charlotte has the ability to open up some cap room this offseason, though that space would be extremely limited if the team extends Malik Monk a qualifying offer and keeps his $16MM+ cap hold on its books. Monk is in the midst of a career year, but his name was involved in the trade conversations the Hornets had for Harrell and Holmes, per Fischer.
If it’s the simplest path to creating the room necessary to sign one of this summer’s top free agent centers, the Hornets could be willing to make Monk unrestricted. Re-signing him to a deal worth less than his cap hold would be another path to generating a little flexibility.
It’ll be tough to fit Drummond under the cap if Monk is re-signed. Monk is having a pretty good season and it’s a tough call to offer him a deal or not over having the ability to sign Drummond
Holmes is great hope he lands 4 for 80
Holmes is perfect for that team.
1. Turner – best all around game
2. Harrell – good all around game
3. Holmes – limited game but active
4. Drummond – limited game not as active
AB-SOO-LOOT-LEE !!
Id switch 2 and 3 and wipe Drummond from the list entirely- Cha is a motion/passing offence, not a good fit for Drummond
Would love Turner there, but options 2 and 3 might only cost money, something they have a little bit of moving forward- Good list tho
Another thought I had would be the move up this draft if they absolutely loved a C that they think pairs well with Ball and Hayward moving forward
Look at Holmes games logs since mid Feb. Dude is just massively improving all over. He’ll be a prize this offseason.
Kings need to resign Holmes
Kings don’t have a plan though.
Charlotte should try to keep Zeller, and a veteran rim protector that can guard pick and roll, giving their young guys a chance to continue to develop makes sense. If they can keep those bigs, or end up with a facsimile of them, they really only need help with shooting at the 2/3 spots off the bench, and I think they’re a very dangerous team
I could see Homes fitting for them though, but I dont think that price makes much sense for them.
Should be interesting to see what happens with Monk. They should keep him, and move Graham, but hard to say what his price will be. Not sure what his cap hold is, but I could see him getting 8-12 million per if teams think this is who he is now. I could also see him even considering a short deal to potentially reach the open market again, after proving it for a couple of more years, and potentially trying to get paid
Realized I forgot to add the Monk cap hold amount to the post. It’s $16MM+, where as Graham’s is below $5MM.
Holmes for 20m a season?? No thanks!
Kings fan here and like all Kings fans, love the guy. If he gets a 20 million a year offer, I’m happy for him personally, but that’s an overpay.
Best teams for Drummond…. where he fits and makes them contenders, at least playoff teams.
Charlotte, Toronto, Dallas . He’s worth 15 mill to them.