The Charlotte Hornets have reached out to the Brooklyn Nets again with the intention of moving Lance Stephenson. But unlike their previous trade talk which was predicated on swapping Stephenson and center Brook Lopez, the Hornets are reportedly interested in acquiring another pricey former All-Star in Joe Johnson this time around.
The Hornets have become increasingly determined in moving on from their Stephenson experiment and add the necessary pieces to boost up their playoff contention this season.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, the Hornets have set their sight on 33-year old Johnson, who is the highest-paid NBA player this season at $23M. Averaging 15.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game, the seven-time NBA All-Star has struggled bit the past few weeks because of a nagging tendinitis.
However, despite a huge contract and durability risk, the Hornets are willing to pull the trigger on the trade which cannot be done without sending more additional salaries to the Nets.
Via Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports:
"The Hornets and Nets are discussing a larger package that would likely include guards Lance Stephenson and Gerald Henderson and forward Marvin Williams, league sources told Yahoo Sports.".
"Charlotte owner Michael Jordan has been intrigued with the possibility of Johnson, who has struggled recently with tendinitis. Johnson, 33, has one of the three major contracts that the Nets would ideally like to unload, what with the $23.1 million on his 2014-'15 deal, and $24.9 million in the final season of his 2015-'16 contract."
The Hornets signed Stephenson to a three-year, $27M contract in the offseason with a lofty expectation the budding shooting guard will develop into a star player and future cornerstone of the franchise. However, Charlotte struggled mightily to start the season, and many analysts believe Stephenson's inability to become a more consistent scorer has a lot to do with their woes.
Stephenson is averaging 9.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 31 minutes per game. He's due to receive $9M over these next two seasons with a player's option for the third year. Meanwhile, the Hornets have surged back to playoff contention by winning 9 of their last 11 games. They are currently in 8th place with 19-26 slate.
