Hornets discussed trade for Ben Simmons at trade deadline

The Charlotte Hornets have an outline for plausible success next season, and after acting as a seller at the trade deadline this past year, they should be pushing forward.

At the deadline, they moved off of Gordon Hayward, also trading PJ Washington. But they almost did a lot more than that this past year.

Hornets discussed Ben Simmons-Miles Bridges trade with Nets at deadline

According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, the Hornets held trade talks with the Brooklyn Nets about bringing Ben Simmons to Charlotte in a deal that would have sent out Miles Bridges.

Bridges would have joined Mikal Bridges in Brooklyn, as the Nets are determined to put a quality team around their star in hopes of pushing forward toward the playoffs.

Meanwhile, Simmons, who only appeared in 15 games for Brooklyn this past season, hasn’t been able to stay on the court consistently since getting traded by the Philadelphia 76ers.

If healthy, Simmons could be an intriguing piece to play alongside LaMelo Ball due to his impressive defense, secondary playmaking, and potential rim-running abilities. But he’s not that player anymore.

In reality, any team that shows an interest in trading for Simmons knows what they are probably getting—nothing. Charlotte’s interest in adding Simmons seems more like a potential desire to get rid of Bridges.

There have been some reports that the Hornets want to re-sign Bridges this summer, but if they were willing to ship him ou in exchange for Simmons at the deadline, then how badly do they really want to keep him around?

This trade would have been a complete and utter salary dump for the Nets and a way for Charlotte to reset a bit around Brandon Miller and Grant Williams at their forward positions.

Heading into the summer, a trade for Simmons could technically still be on the table. Simmons has one more year left on his contract, meaning he would only spend one year on the Hornets roster.

Would Charlotte entertain a sign-and-trade with the Nets that sends them Bridges? Or are they now more interested in keeping the forward around moving forward?

Unfortunately for Simmons and the Hornets, he almost certainly wouldn’t give them any semblance of useful production if he joined the team.