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Charlotte Hornets: Who would be protected in an expansion draft?

By Anthony Boscia

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - DECEMBER 12: Gordon Hayward #20 of the Charlotte Hornets looks on during the first half of their game against the Toronto Raptors at Spectrum Center on December 12, 2020 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - DECEMBER 12: Gordon Hayward #20 of the Charlotte Hornets looks on during the first half of their game against the Toronto Raptors at Spectrum Center on December 12, 2020 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /
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Charlotte Hornets, NBA preseason, Lamelo Ball
Charlotte Hornets LaMelo Ball (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

Charlotte Hornets’ players that are locked to be protected in an expansion draft.

LaMelo Ball

This is one that is obvious. You don’t pick a guy 3rd overall just to let him be selected for free in an expansion draft. The Hornets’ front office truly believes that LaMelo could be the primary cornerstone of the franchise that the team has desperately needed for a little while now. The chance of him being exposed for the draft are so slim, that Bigfoot somehow being out there somewhere that would be almost more believable. Ball is perhaps the single easiest choice to protect.

Gordon Hayward

Part of me really wanted to say maybe if the expansion team picking would want to take on Gordon Hayward’s massive contract that the Hornets would be ok with that, and they could protect a younger player in lieu of Hayward to keep another part of the young core untouched, but I just don’t see it happening. The Hornets view Hayward as sort of a lynchpin in what they want to build, by helping the young guys develop and bridging the gap from another perennial 9th seed and actually progressively making noise in the playoffs, and hopefully helps the team develop enough to where they become title contenders but that really is far away, but as a small market team, slow progression into a title contender is expected. Hayward helps bring the Hornets much needed secondary playmaking, wing defense, and a really good veteran presence for the young guys to lean on. Realistically, he is almost too important to let walk for nothing in return.

PJ Washington

PJ Washington had a stellar rookie season, and despite struggles in the preseason and early in this season so far, he figures to be too important in the Hornets long-term plans to just let slip away fro nothing. He brings so many complementary skills and some much-needed size to this team and arguably can be the Hornets’ best player at times when zoned-in. Before Ball was added to the team, you could make the argument that Washington was the most promising prospect on the Hornets roster. Even with Ball, I think that he is the second most promising prospect on this Hornets team. I think the early struggles will subside as the season goes on. He just has to shake off the rust from the very long offseason. Washington is a very good player, and all of these really premature overreactions don’t change how the Hornets organization views him. And that is as a really big piece of the Charlotte Hornets future. Washington is pretty much a lock to be protected by Kupchak.

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