Mock trade sees Hornets send LaMelo Ball to play with future Hall-of-Famer

The Charlotte Hornets are looking to make some serious changes moving forward. They may not make a huge jump this upcoming season, but it’s clear that they are sick of being one of the worst teams in the league.

By bringing in Charles Lee, who is seemingly committed to establishing a new culture in Charlotte, the team wants to do their rebuild right. Led by LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, they have a very bright future ahead of them.

Mock trade sees Hornets send LaMelo Ball to Warriors

However, Dan Favale of Bleacher Report recently wrote a mock trade that would send Ball to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for an absolute haul of assets.

Here are the full details of the mock trade:

Warriors receive: LaMelo Ball

Hornets receive: Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, Andrew Wiggins, 2026 first-round pick, 2027 first-round swap, 2028 first-round pick, 2029 first-round swap, 2030 first-round pick (protected Nos. 21 to 30; turns into 2031 second-rounder if not conveyed)

To be perfectly clear, the Hornets don’t seem to be looking to trade Ball right now. He’s the centerpiece of what they want to do moving forward, and he’s one of the most electrifying stars in the league.

But the biggest issue with Ball is that he can’t stay on the court. So, if the Hornets did decide to move him, this package from the Warriors would be a phenomenal return for the young stars. That said, pairing him with future Hall-of-Famer Stephen Curry would be very fun to watch.

Brandin Podziemski alone would make this a very intriguing package for the Hornets. He just wrapped up an impressive rookie season and looks to be one of the best young guards in the league.

Moses Moody would be a nice project player, and Andrew Wiggins could play a bit off the bench, but the picks would be the star of the show in this hypothetical deal.

The Warriors would be sending the Hornets first-round picks very far out into the future, and by then, they may not be a playoff team. That means the Hornets could have some top-tier selections.

Unfortunately, just as the Hornets aren’t going to trade Ball, reports have indicated that the Warriors aren’t interested in trading Podziemski at the moment. 

While this mock trade wouldn’t happen for those two reasons, it would be a huge win for the Hornets, and the Warriors would probably never do it. Ball is an amazing player, but giving up that much draft capital would be a bit too much, considering his injury history.