With the Charlotte Hornets struggles at the Center position, Bleacher Report suggests the franchise should consider pursuing Mo Bamba.
After the Charlotte Hornets came out of the gate struggling with a 3-5 record, Bleacher Report suggests that the organization should take a dice roll on young big man Mo Bamba.
Now obviously, they are mostly right in the fact that long-term Cody Zeller and Bismack Biyombo are not contracts that should be pursued. Zeller, who is currently injured, is an average player and Mo Bamba is a half-decent roleplaying big man.
The Hornets haven’t been in any serious trade talks, choosing to believe in their young core and head coach James Borrego. The franchise will need to make some changes to the starting lineup if they want to be a legitimate contender in the conference and pursuing a young player with promise.
Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report reported that the Hornets should go after a “young center for cheap” and Mo Bamba fits that criteria. Buckley stated the following on Bamba’s availability:
"“Now, since splurging is off the table, Charlotte should scan the clearance section, where it might find Mo Bamba with several rate reductions since being made the sixth overall pick in 2018. He’s (woefully) short on proven production but literally long on intrigue—there aren’t a lot of 7-footers with 7’10” wingspans walking around, let alone ones who might actually have a three-point shot in their arsenal.”"
The Magic are likely running out of patience for Bamba to become some superstar overnight. Orlando probably expected much more with a lottery pick, but he will definitely be cheap. Now Berkley suggests a swap for Malik Monk, which he believes makes sense on paper. I however disagree because I think Monk’s value is above Mamba’s.
Monk averaged a career-high of ten points per game in about 20 minutes of play. Monk has proven that he can be a reliable ball-handler and scorer coming off the bench. Bamba only gets about four minutes per game and hasn’t even scored yet this season. The proposal of Monk for Bamba is absurd because Monk is much more valuable than that.
If the team is set on trading for Bamba, it should be a swap for one of the Martin twins. Even then the Hornets can make a return on a second-round pick from Orlando. If Monk is the piece that Orlando wants then maybe Cole Anthony would be worth a look, or Bamba and then a plethora of future picks(likely late first-early second-rounders).
Overall I like the idea of trading for a disgruntled ex-lottery pick with a chip on his shoulder. I think Monk is stretching it for the price but I would like to see the Hornets invest in a talented big man that can help guard the rim a little better and help the Hornets on the glass.