How the Desmond Bane deal could reshape the Hornets’ 2025 NBA draft strategy

Charlotte should target Desmond Bane-type players in the NBA Draft.

Matt Alquiza | Jun 16, 2025

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Charlotte Hornets

The Orlando Magic sent shockwaves through the NBA world on Sunday morning when they swapped an exorbitant number of first-round picks, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Cole Anthony, for fringe All-Star swingman Desmond Bane.

Bane, a 2020 first round draft pick of the Celtics (who never suited up for Boston), is coming off of a season in which he averaged 19.2 points, 5.3 assists, and 6.1 rebounds, on blistering 48/39/89 shooting splits. The former Grizzly is the ideal super-role-playing forward on a championship-level team, offering value both on and off-ball in possession while playing elite defense on the other end of the floor.

You may be thinking to yourself: what does the Desmond Bane trade have to do with the Charlotte Hornets' draft plans? Let's discuss.

First, I have to say, the price Orlando paid for Bane was well worth it in my opinion. As the NBA Finals wind down and teams process what has defined success in the playoffs and begin to reshape their rosters, a couple of truths come to light.

One: playoff teams need multiple ball handlers. Both Oklahoma City and Indiana have numerous guards and wings that can intiate offense with the ball in their hands.

Two: physicality is king. Elite NBA squads grind their opponents down with 94 feet of physicality for 48 consecutive minutes, never surrendering an inch.

Three: off-ball connectivity is a must. While the Thunder and Pacers have a bevy of offensive creators, those same ball handlers can also thrive without the ball in their hands, decimating lackadaisical defenses with well-timed cuts and supreme accuracy from behind the arc.

Desmond Bane is the type of player that would thrive in these NBA Finals, thus defining the price that Orlando paid to slot him next to Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, and Jalen Suggs in their quest to make the leap to title contender in 2025-26.

In Charlotte's draft range, there are two players that possess the requisite skills needed to compete at the highest level of basketball: VJ Edgecombe and Kon Knueppel. And the Hornets should draft one of those two players.

Tre Johnson would struggle to hang in the uber-physical world of the NBA playoffs. He has NBA-ready height, length, shooting skills, and connectivity, but I'm worried about how his inattentive defense and slight frame will translate when the lights get bright.

Ace Bailey can score in bunches, but his similarly slight frame, lack of connective feel, and inability to play through contact make me wonder if he will get played off the floor in May/June. Jeff Peterson and company are looking to build a sustained winner in Charlotte, and even though the Hornets are far from championship contention, every move they make should be gauged through the lens of ultimately competing for a title.

Both Edgecombe and Knueppel were built for playoff basketball. Edgecombe's intensity, physicality, and basketball IQ would fit in nicely with both teams duking it out for the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

Knueppel's connectivity, second-side playmaking, three-point stroke, and underrated strength on defense have drawn comparisons to none other than the man of the hour in the NBA: Desmond Bane. Folks who follow the Hornets would likely pan the selection of Knueppel with the fourth pick, but the Desmond Bane trade made it clear that players of Kon's ilk will always have a spot in a contending team's rotation.

When parsing Charlotte's roster, the pickings of players that could hand on the floor in these NBA Finals are slim. LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller are no-brainers, Miles Bridges and Josh Green *maybe* could play spot minutes for either of these teams, but the rest of the Hornets would struggle to find minutes at the game's pinnacle.

Hornets' fans should look for their team to draft players that could be on the floor in May and June, not put up gaudy counting statistics in the dog days of December and June. Could Tre Johnson and Ace Bailey eventually become players that hoop on Finals contenders? Absolutely. Development isn't linear, and as I've written about in this draft cycle, they both have traits to like.

However, I feel confident that both Kon and VJ are archetypal fits for any NBA team looking to win a championship in the next decade, and if Charlotte comes out with either of them on draft night, it would be a win in my book.