Hornets Confidence Meter: Bridges Trade, Miller Extension + Other Possibilities

The Charlotte Hornets may not have any major pressing issues to attend to this offseason, but they have plenty to figure out in the next few months. How confident should we be about certain things taking place?

For the purposes of this article, we'll use a 1-5 scale for confidence, with five being the most confident and one being the least.

Miles Bridges gets traded

Confidence: 2.5

This one splits right down the middle. I could genuinely see it going either way. On the one hand, he's the weakest member of the starting five, was outplayed by Grant Williams, is not a veteran leader, costs a decent bit, and is on an expiring contract.

On the other hand, the Hornets don't dislike him, and they don't seem like a team that's going to sell too much this offseason. Plus, shaking up the best five-man lineup in the NBA last year is always a big risk, so it could truly go either way.

Coby White gets re-signed

Charlotte Hornets guard Coby White (3) alongside forward Brandon Miller (24) give an interview after the overtime win | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Confidence: 4.5

Anything can happen on the open market, which is why this isn't a full five. Coby White is obviously very good, and since he's an unrestricted free agent, some guard-needy team could pay him an exorbitant amount that the Hornets may be uncomfortable matching.

That said, they have routinely expressed their desire to keep him. Because of the trade, they have a little more financial leeway to bring him back. He's also already a Hornets legend for that Miami Heat game (embarrassing for the history of this franchise, but whatever), so he is highly likely to return.

Brandon Miller signs an extension

Confidence: 2

The Hornets would probably be wise to sign Brandon Miller to an extension right now. They can use his health issues and the fact that he didn't exactly go berserk in a contract year to leverage his surely high cost down just a little bit. They probably won't, though.

In two out of three years, Miller has missed a decent chunk of time. Plus, Miller would probably bet on himself and go out in year four and try to earn a max extension, which, if he's healthy, he probably will. His agents would likely advise against signing now unless it's for the max, which the Hornets likely won't offer.

The Hornets make a draft trade

Confidence: 1

The Hornets have five first-round picks in the next two drafts. With a ton of their key cogs locked up for the foreseeable future, making all of those picks would just be foolish. The question is whether or not they'll do something with 14 and 18 in 2026 or move some of their picks in 2027.

For what it's worth, trading up to the 10 range for the right prospect is probably smart this year, but the Hornets will probably stand pat and bring in two solid rookies and look to deal some of the 2027 picks instead.

Blockbuster trade brings star to Charlotte

Confidence: 0

The Hornets have the assets to trade for almost anyone. Plenty of names will be and have been linked to Charlotte: Bam Adebayo, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown, Zion Williamson, and more. But it would be a genuine shock if any of them made it to Charlotte.

GM Jeff Peterson is adamant about not skipping steps in the rebuild. Sure, they took a leap forward and adding one of those players would push them even higher, but at what cost? The Hornets wanted to be patient, and they're not going to rush into something and risk what they've cautiously and smartly built, so the scale is getting broken on this one.

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