Why the Charlotte Hornets may regret trading Jalen Duren

The excitement for Charlotte Hornets fans was short-lived on Thursday night, as the team immediately traded Jalen Duren after selecting him at the 13th pick. Duren, widely expected to be off the board by the time Charlotte was on the clock, has been regarded as one of the premier big men in this year’s draft class. The pieces fell into place for Duren to wind up with the Hornets, as Ousmane Dieng and Jalen Williams were selected with the 11th and 12th picks, respectively. However, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported soon after Charlotte’s selection that Duren would be headed to the Detroit Pistons by way of the New York Knicks.

The specifics of the trade took a while to become settled, but Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer reported that Charlotte’s total compensation will be one first-round pick and four second-round picks.

The 2023 Denver Nuggets first-round pick is lottery protected through 2025 and has a good chance of conveying next year with Denver likely being a solid team yet again. The second-round picks could turn out to be decent, and Mitch Kupchak has shown that he can identify talent in the second round of the draft, with Cody Martin and JT Thor serving as examples. However, Charlotte will likely look to package some or all of these picks in order to execute a trade with the hopes of shedding some long-term salary ahead of impending contract decisions with Miles Bridges, P.J. Washington, and LaMelo Ball.

Even so, the Hornets had their ideal scenario unfold for them on Thursday night; by drafting Duren, they could draft for need while also drafting the best player available.

Instead, they opted to send Duren out in return for additional draft capital likely to be used to incentivize a trade to shed salary. Charlotte was ultimately able to grab another top center prospect in Duke’s Mark Williams, although Williams is generally considered to be a more limited prospect than Duren. It is worth noting that Williams did have a workout with the Hornets while Duren and his camp cancelled a scheduled workout with the Hornets.

Acquiring a capable center has been the top priority for the Hornets for a substantial period of time. In having Duren fall to them at the 13th pick, the Hornets had seemingly solved their biggest roster deficiency. To be clear, Mark Williams is absolutely capable of becoming Charlotte’s center for years to come. The frustration lies in the fact that the Hornets had a higher-rated prospect in Duren and decided that cutting salary was the more urgent need. The Hornets front office and fans alike will hope that Mark Williams will prove to be the missing piece for a team that will need him to be.