NBA Trades: 1 potential last-minute deal to shake up all 30 NBA teams

NBA Trades: Charlotte Hornets

After a couple of injury-plagued years from LaMelo Ball, the Charlotte Hornets are hoping that he will be healthy and that he can lead the team to the playoffs. That may be a lot to ask but not impossible, as they look to get better in the short-term and in the long-term. 

One way that they can balance both is to make a smaller deal that could be more impactful down the road. That can involve trading backup point guard Vasilije Micić to the Denver Nuggets for Zeke Nnaji and a 2030 top-3 protected pick swap.

While trading a capable backup for a player on a bad contract might not seem like a smart move, the Hornets have Devonte Graham, who is also a capable backup that provides more shooting at point guard. The Nuggets were reportedly interested in adding Micić, given his ties to Nikola Jokic, and they would probably love to get off of Nnaji's deal with him, owed $32 million over the next four years but not being a rotation player.

Them getting more depth behind oft-injured star point guard Jamal Murray and clearing off a bad contract two or even three years ahead of time may be worth it to give up a pick swap since it would give them more flexibility under the tax apron. With Jokic 30 years old, there's no telling how Denver will look in 2030 and that would be a good thing for the Hornets in this scenario.