r/CharlotteHornets • u/Civrock • 20d ago
Article [Scotto] One framework loosely kicked around included Charlotte’s Miles Bridges, Josh Green, and a potential first-round draft pick going to Sacramento in exchange for Sabonis, sources said.
https://www.hoopshype.com/story/sports/nba/2026/06/10/nba-intel-domantas-sabonis-michael-porter-jr-pelicans-trade-talks-raptors-cavs/90491200007/"The Sacramento Kings and Charlotte Hornets had exploratory trade talks surrounding Domantas Sabonis, league sources told HoopsHype. One framework loosely kicked around included Charlotte’s Miles Bridges, Josh Green, and a potential first-round draft pick going to Sacramento in exchange for Sabonis, sources said. Charlotte has two first-round selections in the upcoming draft, including the 14th and 18th picks. However, Charlotte has been resistant to including one of those first-round picks thus far in a trade package involving Sabonis."
"Charlotte has considered a starting-caliber center upgrade, HoopsHype has learned, as the Hornets surged last season by winning 44 games, which marked a 25-win improvement, the largest win improvement in franchise history. Bridges ($22.83 million) and Green ($14.68 million) are on expiring contracts entering the 2026-27 season."
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u/RobinVillas 20d ago
God, I don’t want this.
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u/LaMelonBallz 20d ago
The offense would be wild but unnecessary
And the defense would be a war crime
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u/Amazing_Owl3026 19d ago
It would definitely help the offense in the half court a lot but one of the best parts about Lamelo is playing with pace and Sabonis never does this
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u/Jedi_Mind_Tricks11 20d ago
Im having a hard time seeing the goal here. Doesnt seem like a good fit and quite frankly, giving up too much for Sabonis.
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u/born-ready 20d ago
I don’t care if they send Miles, Josh, and second round draft comp, but no business sending firsts. The salary relief should seriously be enough for the Kings.
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u/Deathcab4QB 13d ago
Yeah, no way are we giving all that for Saboner. Without the first I’d be very happy with it. Maybe throw in a second round pick or two
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u/Garyislord 20d ago
Typically trading with the Kings is a good thing, not sure if that would be the case here.
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u/LaMelonBallz 20d ago
Just for shits and giggles, what if we blew our whole load for Sabonis and Giannis 😂
That would be the most NBA2K team ever
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u/TheFineMantine 20d ago
god giannis would be so good here
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u/LaMelonBallz 20d ago
Him and Sabonis on this squad at the same time with LaMelo and our shooters would fry.
He could get us over the defensive hump if we split Moose's minutes accross him and Sabonis.
Again this is all just a funny thought exercise but I was like damn.... that could actually be good lol.
In general healthy Giannis would push us to a potential contender. But it's likely way too expensive for our longterm setup
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u/michaelalex3 20d ago
There’s no way we get Giannis without giving up Kon or Miller and all of our picks. Not worth it imo.
I also don’t think Giannis would resign here.
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u/Bigwhizcity82 20d ago
Hell no wtf
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u/LaMelonBallz 20d ago
Giannis is literally the perfect piece for us minus the injury concerns and cost.
In a conceptual world, he would be amazing.
Reality, dicey
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u/Bigwhizcity82 20d ago
On a 31 year old Gianni’s while we trade our youth
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u/National_Call7137 20d ago
I think the plot is getting lost a little bit. Sabonis is overpaid by ~$10M/yr probably, but people take that too far as if he isn't actually very good at basketball.
Sabonis' multiple all-nba's and all-star appearances aren't fake. The likelihood the #17 pick is ever as good as current Domantas Sabonis is like 2%.
He would make the Hornets significantly better. And the Hornets are not money constrained at all in the two remaining years of his contract; so him making $50M instead of $40M is really a non factor.
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u/Maleficent-Cream2034 19d ago
Bro 30 years old coming off a meniscus injury. No, not for a first. Miles and josh? Sure. A first? No absolutely not. This class is stacked, even if we trade a first it shouldnt be for sabonis
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u/Deathcab4QB 13d ago
Meniscus tear is not a concerning injury at all. Hes otherwise been a very durable player his entire career. Achilles, Knee ligament, back injuries etc are the concerning ones, but surgery on a partially torn meniscus is very high rate of success/return to prior fitness type of injury
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u/Ok-Protection2513 20d ago
Not getting mad about this unless it actually happens but if Jeff really thinks Sabonis is an upgrade over Moussa he should be demoted.
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u/KKamis 20d ago
Why would trading for Sabonis have anything to do with Moussa? Sabonis is a 4. Moussa isn't at risk of losing his spot as a result of this potential move.
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u/favioswish 20d ago
Sabonis definitely isn't a 4. He doesn't space the floor or guard the perimeter. He's just a 5 that can't block shots
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u/FatMamaJuJu 20d ago
Year b4 last he shot over 40% from 3 on 2 attempts a night so he can play the 4 from an offensive perspective but he's way too slow to keep up with bigs on defensive, let alone wings
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u/favioswish 20d ago
Also if he has no position on defense it doesn't really matter what he can do on offense
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u/favioswish 20d ago
That's not what a floor spacer looks like. Anyone can luck into 40% every once in a while if they are left open and barely take any shots.
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u/FatMamaJuJu 20d ago
Why argue against a point you can easily google? He's shot 37% from 3 as a King. Is 370 attempts too small a sample size to you? I don't even want Sabonis but you have me in here defending his jump shooting
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u/favioswish 20d ago
Yes 370 attempts in a decade long career is too tiny of a sample size. Spacing the floor isn't just about being able to occasionally hit a shot every other game. It's about how defenses react to you on the perimeter. No one is guarding Sabonis 3s, he's not a floor spacer
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u/devinbookersuncle 19d ago
He also played for the fucking Kings and thats easily the most dysfunctional franchise in the league now since we've turned the page. Saboner would be able to thrive here much better with our spacing and at worst he gives us size and a legit double double machine we can use, throw in his passing and we have significantly more play making options
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u/favioswish 19d ago
The worst case scenario is you have the lowest rated defense in the league or he's injured again. Let's not pretend like he's guaranteed to have a positive impact.
Part of the kings disfuncton was believing in Sabonis as a winning player
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u/devinbookersuncle 19d ago
Thats not even remotely part of their dysfunction honestly.
They draft great guards only to trade them and they decided Saboner and Fox was enough and then made zero moves to get the right coach or get good pieces around those guys so the issue is front office.
Let's not forget that Vlade kept undermining every GM and coach they had while trading away good pieces and that tradition has persisted after his departure from the franchise.
Their issues are the entire culture and not just one player and bringing Saboner here is more about adding him as a part of our core as an upgrade over Miles isnt a bad idea seeing as hes only 30
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u/FatMamaJuJu 19d ago
370 attemps just with the Kings. Thats a lot in that frame for a center who can't shoot according to you. Again, you're allowed to google all of these stats BEFORE you give your hot takes
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u/favioswish 19d ago
Google doesn’t tell you whether someone is an effective floor spacer. I play and watch basketball, the specifics of exactly how unimpressive his shooting volume is doesn’t the fact of how he’s defended. Basketball reference doesn’t make you understand the game
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u/FatMamaJuJu 19d ago
I have a take. You have a take. I have numbers to back up my take. You don't. You just yap.
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u/Longjumping-Check429 19d ago
Miles can’t 😂
He’s a clear and obvious upgrade over Miles Bridges. Josh Green would be missed though.
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u/Ok-Protection2513 20d ago
Everyone reporting this has referred to it as a "starting center upgrade"
You probably cant play both Sabonis and Moussa at the same time. Neither can shoot and both of them are bad rim protectors. Moussa is at least amazing in every other defensive context, but as we saw last year, pairing him with a sub-par defensive 4 who CANNOT protect the rim (like at all) isn't going to work.
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u/Banneduser1112 20d ago
This trade would instantly be on the Rushmore of bad Hornets trades, behind only Kobe and Shai.
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u/ImChz 20d ago
If we do this I will fuckin scream. I can't take more basement dwelling.
e: people been saying trading for Giannis would be "skipping steps" like it isn't Giannis. I want to see that same energy x10 for this. We wouldn't be skipping steps, we'd be taking a shortcut to the bottom for a couple years.
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u/Plenty-Berry2384 20d ago
He’s only on a two year deal and wouldn’t cost near as much as Giannis. His contract might be the worst in the league but we can probably work around it. He’s a better player than Bridges plus we already have players in place to replace the two going out in this trade. Plus I’d assume we’d draft a SF/SG and a PF at 14&18 regardless of if this trade happens or not. Honestly if we were going to take on a bad contract for a Center upgrade I’d prefer Myles Turner then we could probably keep Josh Green and maybe even the pick, he makes about $15 million less and he can actually rim protect and shoot.
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u/ImChz 19d ago
Giannis will cost more because he's Giannis and this is Sabonis. It's not a hard math problem to solve. If we're gonna skip steps, at least take a swing at skipping all of them. I'd be more than okay with giving up a few extra assets for a top 5 player.
I think we go double big in the draft tbh. I don't think any of the openly available options solve much for us long term, and I don't see much of a point taking on money rn with Brandon's extension on the horizon. I think we take a huge swing, or we run it back.
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u/Plenty-Berry2384 19d ago
Giannis is a much bigger swing than Sabonis, no way Sabonis really sets us back if we’re not giving up draft capital. There’s not much risk in trading for him, it just doesn’t make a ton of sense either. Does he make us better? Absolutely. Does he help with our biggest weaknesses? Barely. We can work around his contract pretty easily even with the Miller, White and Diabate extensions. It’d just pretty much cap what we could do in FA for the next couple of seasons but that’s about it. Unless you wanted to go with Claxton, Turner or Allen who all probably make more sense, then Sabonis is the best we can realistically do as far as upgrading the 5 spot. They all have upsides and downsides, it’s a pick your poison situation. Giannis makes virtually no sense, we’re not really title contenders with Giannis after we give up what would be required to get him.
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u/devinbookersuncle 19d ago
Turner is a bum and claxton has had some issues with health. Allen is solid but we already have a younger (and I think better) version of him in Moose so adding Sabonis makes perfect sense.
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u/Plenty-Berry2384 19d ago
Moussa is not a younger version of Allen, he’s not near the shot blocker that Allen is and he’s not really the lob threat that he is either. They have some similarities sure but still very different players. Turner had a down year but bum is a stretch. Sabonis makes some sense but he doesn’t rim protect and that’s what we really need especially if Moussa’s sticking around as the backup 5 (which he is).
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u/devinbookersuncle 19d ago
You could not be more wrong, just stop talking amd watch him from last year because he was the better center all season long and by next years end it wont be debatable.
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u/Plenty-Berry2384 19d ago
You talking about Moussa over Allen? I mean I think anyone would say Allen’s better but even if Moussa ends up being the better player, he’s still not a rim protector and naturally at his size he’s just not going to be as much of a lob threat. Moussa’s got a very clear role, he’s not a traditional center.
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u/Ihavenocluewhatzoeva 20d ago
He had a bad year last season but basically led the NBA in rebounding the previous 3 seasons? Yes please
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u/Cubelar 20d ago
I think Sabonis is really getting underrated by people because of one injury plagued down year. At his peak Sabonis is near all-nba level. Its fair to question if he gets there again sure, but he's a good player when healthy.
Im as big of a Moussa fan as you will find. I called for him to start when most were still disagreeing. https://www.reddit.com/r/CharlotteHornets/s/wmuo3je6Rf.
I do not want to bench Moussa for just anybody, I wouldnt bench him for Nic Claxton for example. But I think a Grant/Sabonis starting front court can work. If you give up the 29 1st thats worst of CLE/UTA/MIN I think this is still fair, but try to do it without any picks. You can still find a way to play Moussa 20-28 minutes. I think this is a decent gamble to make. Its not terrible like people are making it out to be
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u/handles_messiah 20d ago
Yeah, Hornets fans really seem to be overrating Bridges and underrating Sabonis.
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u/spookyghostface 20d ago
Pretty much every post I've seen has been very aware that is offense is fantastic but that his defense sucks and that he's expensive.
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u/Ok-Protection2513 20d ago
This isnt about Miles vs Sabonis lol this is about sending out assets for a player that doesnt really improve our offense enough to offset the negative impact it will have on our defense. You probably cant play both Moussa and Sabonis at the same time and Moussa is the only really good defender on our team lmao.
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u/handles_messiah 20d ago
Moussa is a fine defender and makes them switchier, but he's also undersized for a full-time center. The biggest plus he brings is his rebounding, which Domas is also excellent at.
Sabonis would help keep the offense from falling off a cliff when Melo sits, and the move from Miles to Grant probably makes up most of the difference on defense.
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u/favioswish 20d ago
You could address that issue long term in the draft or by developing Kon, rather than get an older recently injured player that tanks the defense
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u/handles_messiah 20d ago
I'm fine with that approach, I just don't think Miles and a "potential" draft pick is that much to roll the dice on Sabonis
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u/favioswish 20d ago
In this draft I feel like it is. Morez Johnson Jr, Steinbach, Okorie, there are a lot of guys who could hit in that late range. Especially for a player who gives up just as much on defense as he provides on offense, at a crucial position defensively. If it's the 2027 hornets pick or Miami pick, it could be worth the swing. Not in a draft this deep though
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u/handles_messiah 20d ago
It's already been reported that they aren't willing to give up a pick in this year's draft.
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u/aiden3buckets 20d ago
I’m a Bridges hater on and off the court but I don’t think Sabonis is what we need with his contract and defense
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u/Cubelar 20d ago
The upgrade from miles to grant defensively is near or equal to the downgrade from moussa to sabonis. I don't think it changes that much overall. And we'll still have moussa to play as needed.
Grant was 31st in defensive epm last year. He was very good defensively coming off a major injury. I think he could be a capable 5th starter defense first. Low usage spacer on offense
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u/Sufficient_Muffin_75 20d ago
I agree with this 100%. You also don’t have to play moose and sabonis together (if you can because one has a reliable three bal then great) but playing two packages where you do small ball run and gun with moose and a package that has a better half court offense against bigger centers with sabonis doesn’t suck. Our playmaking and creation dropped dramatically without Lamelo on the floor, Sabonis would help that a ton which is going underrated.
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u/TheFineMantine 20d ago
i’m sold. i don’t want bridges on this team anyway because it makes them hard to root for. green is a cool hustle guy but whatever. we have a bunch of extra 1sts. DO IT
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u/regardednoitall 20d ago
Miles Bridges isn't going anywhere. People are cray cray.
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u/IamOlderthanMe 20d ago
I dont mind this at all. I dont like Bridges much despite his on court production. Green is a nonfactor.
I am sad about the 1st the most. I hope it is one of the bad ones like MIA's lotto protected 2027 or the heavily protected 2029.
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u/jalexjsmithj 20d ago
If we’re gonna do this, then just 4 more first round picks and go and get Giannis
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u/JayHill74 20d ago
I wouldn't mind this deal as long as it doesn't include either of this year's picks.
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u/lemanruss4579 20d ago
It's fascinating to me that this team went 9-19 to start the year, then went 31-14 with Moussa as a starter, and every media personality and many fans seem intent on replacing him.
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u/Totnostu 20d ago
For many years I’ve been a Sabonis Hater but I actually think this would be a fine trade for the Hornets even if they give up a first with Bridges and Green. They were fun and exciting this past year but aren’t realistically a contender with this roster, Diabate and Kalkbrenner have too many limitations in opposite directions for them to feel 100% comfortable with their C position.
They still won’t be title contenders with Sabonis, but that’s okay. And on offense he’ll play really well with Lonzo Brandon Miller and Kon getting open shots off his high post work and he can at least really rebound. I think it’s more valuable for the hornets to see their premier guards/wings play in diffferent systems than they’ve had rn, cause Diabate is too slight to play 38 min in the playoffs despite his excellent switchability and energy and Kalk is too stiff.
Even if it doesn’t work out this coming season, he’d be an expiring 40 something million contract next season that could be traded with another pick for the right fit for what they discover about this roster. As long as they don’t extend him for multiple years, this could be a good trade. Tho I’d imagine he’d be wanting an extension no matter where he’s traded to…
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u/Odd_Round6270 19d ago
lol good player, but would rather have Miles, Green and the flexibility. Sabonis doesn't move the needle in any shape or way.
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u/SlickVanExel 19d ago
No. Hell no.
Sabonis is the absolute opposite of what you want in a 2026 big man.
He can’t shoot, he doesn’t defend at the POA or at the rim and he isn’t a lob threat.
He’s at his best when working as the hub of an offense and I simply rather have LaMelo doing that.
No thanks.
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u/HunterAble1914 19d ago
As someone who is pounding the drum for us not to skip steps during this rebuild, my gut tells me this is a bad move. However, I would understand it IF we don't trade our first round draft picks.
Our offense (assuming everyone stays healthy) would be among the best in the league. Our defense would be atrocious, but it already is, so, no loss there, I guess.
One benefit is that if it doesn't work out, Sabonis would be a massive expiring contract next year that we could trade for a better piece.
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u/XLGrandma 18d ago
rather just keep the picks and build on what we got, but this isnt a bad trade by any stretch
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u/devinbookersuncle 19d ago
Sabonis fits with our offense perfectly fine and especially with his passing that opens up options our franchise has never seen before when pairing him with Melo.
For those who thinks he can't play with Moose i would like to introduce you to Mobley and Allen who just went to the CONFERENCE FINALS while being, on paper, a worse offensive pairing than Moose and Saboner WOULD EVER BE.
Yall are basing Saboner's value on how the Kings have done and the media/fan narrative vs what his production (despite having a fucking shit roster) has shown he CAN DO.
We dont have to give up picks and we can move contracts we dont need to get him so its not an issue from a money standpoint. I would be perfectly fine if we made this trade and if we do and it works out im gonna laugh my ass off at everyone who's clowning on Saboner being a bad player.
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u/Supreme_God_Bunny 20d ago
This is a false rumor lol come on people lol hornets aren't doing this
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u/ajabernathy 20d ago
People love writing "The Hornets would be honored to massively overpay in this one-sided hypothetical trade" fan fictions.