Hornets could be interested in Russell Westbrook

[yosemiteben]

If Terry and LaMelo don't get better on defense then the ceiling for this team is 8th seed at best

You can't win having your guards getting blown by all the time

If Hayward hadnt had covid, rushed back and gotten squashed we would have been 5th this year. We should be better just off growth next year.

I agree, but that's pretty much what we said last year. When you add in Batum's stretch, he got a top 10 salary the past two years. I struggle to t see him staying healthier when he is older.

The Rozier part of any proposed trade I see as complete non-sense, but the Hayward part (particularly when noticing Miles playing better at SF and PJ at PF recently) I think makes some sense.

[Chapelchilla]

We're in here talking about Westbrook when there's a real chance the Suns are going to look to sign and trade Ayton this summer. If that's a real possibility and Jordan is still fixated on Westbrook we need someone close to him to throw a month long party on some island in the Pacific Ocean to keep him away from the team and let Kupchak do his job.

Now Ayton is worth trading for. Terry or Hayward, Bouk or Kai, maybe PJ and a #1? Sign me up for that.

[Jody Smokz]

Do it Mitch!

[LofJ]

Do it Mitch!

[KembaWalker]

This trade Rozier stuff is idiotic. Almost as idiotic as the make him a 6th man nonsense earlier this season. He was ranked as the 8th best starting 2 guard in a preseason article before the season, and got off to a slow start but has since been the same player as last season before he rightfully got paid on performance. He's durable, doesn't get hurt, and is an athletic knockdown shooter.

He also doesn't play defense. You only mentioned his offensive output. No one here dislikes Terry, but he's an undersized 2 guard that doesn't play defense on a long contract. Just because the front office extended him for four years doesn't mean it was the right thing to do.

He was the exact same player this year as he was the season before they extended him. They like what they see from him, and they aren't looking at it as a mistake.

I have to assume anyone that thinks we're salary dumping him hated the extension in the first place and are just hoping the FO completely changed their views even though nothing about Terry changed. That seems extraordinarily unlikely.

I was fine with the extension and I'm sure the front office was too..the problem is that the front office wasn't operating on the assumption that Miles Bridges was going to command a 173/5 max contract this offseason as is currently being reported.
i disagree with calling Terrys extension a mistake however it can be simultaneously true that the extension was fine at the time and that, well, things have changed now and we need financial flexibility. its probably our karma for locking Kemba in on a cheap contract extension and doing absolutely nothing with it. we didn't get that lucky this time. it is what it is

[yosemiteben]

He also doesn't play defense. You only mentioned his offensive output. No one here dislikes Terry, but he's an undersized 2 guard that doesn't play defense on a long contract. Just because the front office extended him for four years doesn't mean it was the right thing to do.

He was the exact same player this year as he was the season before they extended him. They like what they see from him, and they aren't looking at it as a mistake.

I have to assume anyone that thinks we're salary dumping him hated the extension in the first place and are just hoping the FO completely changed their views even though nothing about Terry changed. That seems extraordinarily unlikely.

I was fine with the extension and I'm sure the front office was too..the problem is that the front office wasn't operating on the assumption that Miles Bridges was going to command a 173/5 max contract this offseason as is currently being reported.
i disagree with calling Terrys extension a mistake however it can be simultaneously true that the extension was fine at the time and that, well, things have changed now and we need financial flexibility. its probably our karma for locking Kemba in on a cheap contract extension and doing absolutely nothing with it. we didn't get that lucky this time. it is what it is

If we think Terry deserves his contract, I don't understand why we'd salary dump him. That's just wasting assets, and seems particularly foolish to me given that Miles is a RFA so we control him anyway. We don't need to move Terry to be able to keep Miles, and dumping Terry like this doesn't actually free up any cap space this year anyway.

[amcoolio]

[LofJ]

The only reason I might believe the team is thinking about trading for Westbrook is to please Klutch. If we do it we better get a sweetheart extension deal done with Miles.

[spankymoore7]

If we got rid of JB because we thought we were a playoff roster I don’t see why we would dump Hayward and Rozier

[Hornet Mania]

The Ringer has no sauces.

It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, imo, because it would open up our books and let us realign everything around the Melo/Miles (and younger prospects) timeline.

But really the only 'reporting' here was The Ringer reading that MJ admires Westbrook in an interview months ago and their ignorant staff immediately jumping to 'Oh yeah, MJ is GM and makes all Charlotte picks/trades with no outside input! A trade must be imminent' for content.

[BeesWax]

I can see dumping Hayward but not Terry. We won without GH last year. Terry actually isn’t a bad fit and is a very popular player with the team it appears.

[MasterIchiro]

Rozier + Oubre + Plumlee works for Westbrook. Did D'Antoni coach Russ in Houston?

[yosemiteben]

Rozier + Oubre + Plumlee works for Westbrook. Did D'Antoni coach Russ in Houston?

Good question. I thought they shipped out Russ while he was there? Honestly don't remember.

[MasterIchiro]

Rozier + Oubre + Plumlee works for Westbrook. Did D'Antoni coach Russ in Houston?

Good question. I thought they shipped out Russ while he was there? Honestly don't remember.

Okay, so apparently he did coach Russ. It was the last year in Houston for both of them in 2019-2020. Russ made his last All-Star appearance at age 31. Interesting that there's a link.

[Soul Rebel]

Rozier + Oubre + Plumlee works for Westbrook. Did D'Antoni coach Russ in Houston?

I like it merely for the financial and contract year gains to redistribute to Miles and Ball.

Rozier the next 4 years:

$21M
$23M
$25M
$26M

Oubre for '22 is on a $12.5M deal + Plumlee on $8.5

I don't like Westbrook as a long-term piece and not a fan of his style of play integrating well with our youngsters. However, Westbrook at $47 or Rozier/Oubre/Plums at $42 and then nothing after 2022 is very tempting.

Westbrook here gives us a playoff vet and allows Bouk to be the back-up and cut his teeth with a year until he takes over at the 2. Or, we draft Daniels/Sharpe to be the SG of the future this year.

Give Bridges whatever it takes to remain a Hornet. Prefer not the max, but can't justify giving a 30-year old Hayward with injury concerns $30M per and not offering that to a 24-year old perfect compliment to Ball. Hayward falls off in two more years and then we convert that money to Ball.

[Liver_Pooty]

Big, big Westbrook fan. Through his flaws and constant scrutiny the dude always gives max effort. Doesn't matter if it's game 23 in the regular season or the playoffs.

[MasterIchiro]

Rozier + Oubre + Plumlee works for Westbrook. Did D'Antoni coach Russ in Houston?

I like it merely for the financial and contract year gains to redistribute to Miles and Ball.

Rozier the next 4 years:

$21M
$23M
$25M
$26M

Oubre for '22 is on a $12.5M deal + Plumlee on $8.5

I don't like Westbrook as a long-term piece and not a fan of his style of play integrating well with our youngsters. However, Westbrook at $47 or Rozier/Oubre/Plums at $42 and then nothing after 2022 is very tempting.

Westbrook here gives us a playoff vet and allows Bouk to be the back-up and cut his teeth with a year until he takes over at the 2. Or, we draft Daniels/Sharpe to be the SG of the future this year.

Give Bridges whatever it takes to remain a Hornet. Prefer not the max, but can't justify giving a 30-year old Hayward with injury concerns $30M per and not offering that to a 24-year old perfect compliment to Ball. Hayward falls off in two more years and then we convert that money to Ball.

Yeah, Russ fits the D'Antoni system and rebounds the ball. It's possible Kupchak forecasts Bouknight will be ready to start in one year, and here there's a chance to unload the Rozier contract for someone who played under D'Antoni for a full season.

This kind of deal would limit the Hornets to MLE for a center due to lack of matching salary unless Hayward goes out for someone like Myles Turner.

[yosemiteben]

Big, big Westbrook fan. Through his flaws and constant scrutiny the dude always gives max effort. Doesn't matter if it's game 23 in the regular season or the playoffs.

I'm with you in that I'm a long time Westbrook fan.

Does make me wonder if MJ looked at us being blown out in two elimination games and said, "F this, if we're gonna get blown out I'm at least going to see max effort out there on the floor."

I'll be able to get excited if he comes here, but I also can't act like I think it's a good idea from a roster construction and fit perspective.

My principal issue is I don't know how he fits with Melo. Clunky as hell fit.

[JDR720]

I find it hard to believe our interest in WB is anything but a potential salary dump since WB is expiring.

[JMAC3]

Hornets trade Hayward and 15
Hornets receive Turner

Pacers send Brogdon and Turner
Pacers receive Westbrook, Lakers future lottery protected first and 15

Lakers send Westbrook and Future Lot protect first
Lakers get Hayward and Brogdon