No big moves, no big deal? Why the Hornets are likely to stay quiet this summer

Charlotte is taking the long game approach to its rebuild.

While it's still very early in his tenure as the Charlotte Hornets' key decision-maker, Jeff Peterson may have shown his hand a year ago when he elected to take a shot on the youngest player in the draft, Tidjane Salaün.

The pick screamed long-term vision, even though the class as a whole wasn't very intriguing. Salaün is a multi-year project, and the front office knew that when they turned the card in. Now, you could make the argument that if there was a year to "roll the dice" on a raw player with upside, that was the year to do it. However, none of what Peterson has done gives the notion that they're ready to win now and make significant changes to the roster.

In some ways, I understand the hesitancy.

Each member of Charlotte's core - LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, and Mark Williams - has missed significant time early in their careers. You don't want to invest heavily in a group that can't stay on the floor. At the same time, though, you have to make some moves to even give that group a chance to compete.

As I highlighted yesterday, trading Miles Bridges now makes a lot of sense and for a variety of reasons. The problem? It probably won't happen. He's been the one guy Charlotte can count on to be available every night, and in addition to that, he's been very consistent and carries a heavy workload.

Having guys like Seth Curry and Taj Gibson on the roster helps, but the veterans they bring in need to contribute more off the bench. I don't see Gibson returning, but Seth? The hometown kid? Yeah, there's a good chance he'll be back, so not much change there on the veteran front.

The area where the Hornets could use the most help is their bench options at the two through four spots on the floor. Instead of continuing to rotate in low-risk, low-ceiling players like Damion Baugh, Wendell Moore Jr, DaQuan Jeffries, Tidjane Salaün, and so on, Peterson could reload the bench with a Bridges trade or sign some guys in free agency. The problem here? Charlotte doesn't have the money to spend to land anything of significance. At least not at the moment.

So, what this boils down to is the Hornets depending on the fourth overall pick in the draft, the possible re-signing of Tre Mann, and whatever they get back in a Mark Williams trade, assuming they attempt to move him again. That's probably it this offseason for Charlotte, and trading Williams is not a guarantee to happen.

I've said for a while now, the Hornets are probably going to "stand pat" for the most part until the 2026-27 season, when they have the new practice facility to show off to free agent targets, and it gives LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller time to develop and become a prolific one-two punch.

Another quiet offseason in Charlotte? You bet.

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