Charlotte Hornets Aggressively Seeking Trade; Potential Partners
By Jon Shames
Boston Celtics
I’ve been saying it since the summer: Jeff Green would be an excellent fit with the Charlotte Hornets.
Green, playing for the lowly Boston Celtics, has slowly become one of the league’s better scorers. He is a 6-foot-9 sharpshooting forward with an explosive first step, deadly speed and overwhelming strength, he has possessed the tools to be just that since he entered the league.
The change though, has been in his mindset. The mental aspect of Green’s game seems to finally be on-par with the physical one. He has had his issues with consistency in the past, but this year, Green has scored in double figures in every single on of the Celtics’ 14 games.
With the Hornets, Green would be a second or third option, a role that, frankly, suits him much better than his current one as a go-to guy.
But Green isn’t the only player that the Celtics can offer the Hornets; Boston is also home to both Brandon Bass and Marcus Thornton, two players who have already been dubbed potential targets for Charlotte.
Bass is known for being one of the league’s best midrange shooters, but an underrated part of Bass’s game is his cutting, something that has been seldom found in Steve Clifford’s zero-motion offense.
The Hornets actually feature some excellent passers in their starting lineup, but the lack of off-ball movement hasn’t allowed the aforementioned passing abilities to be displayed.
Bass loves to get out in transition, and in halfcourt sets, he can recognize which circumstances warrant him spotting up along the baseline, and which invite a cut to the rim.
The Hornets are also in need of three-point specialists, and Marcus Thornton, who absolutely fits that description, could be their guy. Thornton has had a pretty decent career as an instant-offense guy, and especially in recent years, he has become a valuable bench player for the assortment of clubs he’s played for.
He is a scorer by nature, and while he might not always do it super efficiently, he’s going to get points on the board. He specializes in off-balance shots and floaters, and when his confidence is flowing, it’s tough to stop him; nobody slows Marcus Thornton down besides Marcus Thornton.
The only potential issue is his expiring contract; with more than $8 million coming off the books after this year, Danny Ainge might want an extra pick thrown into any deals that the Charlotte Hornets may construct for the wing.
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