The Charlotte Hornets have the opportunity this year to follow the blueprint they established around the 2024 trade deadline when they flipped some of their veterans for several assets.
The organization's transactions included trading Terry Rozier for the Miami Heat's 2027 first-round pick, Gordon Hayward for a package that included Tre Mann and draft capital, and P.J. Washington for Seth Curry, Grant Williams, and another 2027 first-round selection.
It would have been helpful for the Hornets' rebuild if they managed to consummate similar deals this season. However, they may have lost their opportunity to move on from their veterans in exchange for younger talent and more draft picks.
Trading Cody Martin and Vasilije Micic might be impossible now
Charlotte already shipped Nick Richards, gifting him to the center-starved Phoenix Suns. Interestingly, the Suns have won four of their five games after the trade, with Richards recording three double-doubles (including a 20-point, 19-rebound effort against the Washington Wizards) during that stretch.
Considering that moving the Jamaican big man has so far helped a contender in a similar manner to how Washington was key to the Dallas Mavericks last year, perhaps the Hornets should have asked for a first-round pick from Phoenix.
On the bright side, the Hornets got Josh Okogie out of that deal. The defensive-minded swingman has been a bane for Buzz City, endearing himself to fans and giving the front office plenty of reasons to keep him rather than send him elsewhere this season.
The Hornets still have at least two vets they should sell before the trade deadline, namely Cody Martin and Vasilije Micic. Unfortunately, it looks more likely that those guys will stay in Mint City beyond Feb. 6.
Martin missed the team's previous two contests, with core tightness as the listed reason for his absence. However, Charlotte's latest injury update shows he is dealing with a sports hernia.
James Plowright of CLTure.org noted that hernias can rarely be solved by rehabilitation or rest. Surgery might be the best treatment option, and choosing that route would not only park the sixth-year pro for an extended period but also impact his viability as a trade piece ahead of next week's deadline.
That leaves the franchise with Micic as the remaining trade candidate, but the market seems dry for the European point guard. He has failed to prove capable of running an NBA offense, often looking confused about what to do with the ball and curiously losing his shooting touch.
It's tough to find another team willing to part ways with its assets to bring in Micic. So, the Hornets might have no choice but to also hold onto him until the end of the 2024-25 campaign.