Analyzing the Charlotte Hornets' Bold Trade Deadline Swing for Coby White

After the Charlotte Hornets beat the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday afternoon, their sixth-straight victory, Collin Sexton had a two-word message for the rest of the NBA: "We're coming."

Just four days later, the Hornets dealt Sexton to the Chicago Bulls alongside Ousmane Dieng (tweet me your favorite moment of the Ousmane Dieng era in Charlotte) and three second-round picks to acquire veteran guard Coby White.

Cold world.

Sexton was, by all accounts, an awesome locker room presence in Charlotte. He played with max effort every time he wore a Hornets uniform, revving up his teammates and the Spectrum Center with big-time shots and emotive celebrations. His uncanny ability to ice opposing runs by drawing a foul will truly be missed in the Queen City.

With that said, let's break down the trade.

Why did the Hornets trade Collin Sexton for Coby White?

On the surface, Sexton and White boast pretty similar statistical profiles.

Sexton: 14.2 points per game, 1.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 48/37/90 shooting splits

White: 18.6 points per game, 3.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 43/34/80 shooting splits

Those basic counting stats paint a pretty clear picture. White brings more raw production, Sexton plays more efficiently. However, there's more to the story here.

Part of why Sexton never fully gelled in Charlotte is his low three-point volume. The Hornets as a whole attempt the fourth-highest frequency of three-point shots in the league (42.9%) -- Charles Lee has built the bedrock of his deadly offensive attack (currently 8th in the league in offensive rating) behind the arc.

That isn't how Sexton prefers to play basketball. Per Cleaning the Glass, Charlotte attempted 4.6% fewer of their attempts from behind the arc when Collin played, and they made 3.7% less of those attempts.

Lower volume, lower efficiency.

Basically, the Hornets totally altered their shot diet for the worse when Sexton captained the offense.

Coby White's ability to create long-range three-point looks for himself and his teammates should limit the major drop off that their offense has seen when LaMelo Ball rests.

The Hornets were losing Sexton's minutes by 6.3 points per 100 possessions -- a 21st percentile number in basketball, and the majority the Sexton led unit's struggles were on the offensive end. The Hornets desparately needed a less volatile back court option who also played their preferred brand of hoops to keep their offense afloat without their superstar point guard on the floor.

White is an efficient scorer (53.1% effecitive field goal percentage) who gets the majority of his looks at the rim (34%, 81st percentile among guards) and from beyond the arc (46%, 53rd percentile); the idealistic analytical shot diet.

The 2025-26 season has been far from White's best as a three-point shooter, but he has proven throughout his career that he is both adept at making threes in both catch-and-shoot and pull-up situations.

The North Carolina native is also a skilled driver of the basketball who relentelssly attacks the paint with physicality, bowling over defenders with a rare combination of power and finesse that is difficult to stop. White is a prolific three-point shooter in terms of volume and accuracy, but don't be mistaken -- he brings a well-rounded scoring package to the table that should thrive in Charlotte's high-octane offense.

The hope is not only that White can, again, create three-point looks for himself and his teammates, but also limit the team's struggles with turnovers. Coby White is having an outlier season in terms of turnover percentage (15.3%, 16th percentile), but he's been about league-average in terms of that stat in every other season of his career. If White can clean up Charlotte's propensity to cough the ball up, a flaw that Sexton unfortunately accentuated, this deal will absolutely improve the Hornets' playoff outlook.

Not only will White improve Charlotte's offense by leading all-bench units; he's a neat fit next to LaMelo in offensive-first lineups. In 235 minutes, lineups with both LaMelo and Sexton in the back court were a +5.0, and I would expect that net rating to rise when you replace Sexton with White. Coby's gravity as a shooter combined with his skill as a driver at 6'4" can create some tantalizing small ball combinations in Charlotte.

Charles Lee's expirimentation with Sion James as the leader of Charlotte's second unit can now be put on ice for the rest of the season, allowing the rookie to lean into his connective skills as an off-ball player. The Hornets' coach clearly wasn't comfortable with handing the keys of the second unit to Sexton with how often he let the rookie attempt to tread water on offense.

Bringing in Coby White, a proven lead ball handler who has been a net positive for the Bulls in three of the past four seasons, is a clear upgrade for the Hornets right now. And for the price of Sexton, Ousmane Dieng, and three future second-round picks that are a crapshoot at best? The deal as a whole is a clear win for Charlotte.

White is a pending free agent this summer, and it will be interesting to see if he's willing to sign long-term in Charlotte to operate as a sixth man. He has been a starter for the majority of his career and it's rare to see a productive 26-year-old hit the market for the first time in his NBA career and accept a scaled down role.

That's a problem for another day. On this day, the Charlotte Hornets made a move that solidifies their position as playoff hopefuls in 2026, and it's full steam ahead towards the Play-In Tournament.

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