Report: Hornets expected to ‘revisit’ Mark Williams trade talks in offseason

Report: Hornets expected to ‘revisit’ Mark Williams trade talks in offseason

The Charlotte Hornets decided to trade center Mark Williams ahead of the 2024-25 NBA Trade Deadline to the Los Angeles Lakers for rookie sharpshooter Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, a 2030 first-round pick swap plus a 2031 first-round pick outright.

Except, the trade never actually went through.

Williams, who’s dealt with myriad injuries to his back, hand and ankle over his three-year career, failed the Lakers’ physical, nullifying the trade. As he enters the last year of his rookie contract, the Charlotte Hornets are expected to re-explore those trade talks this offseason, according to NBA insider Marc Stein of The Stein Line.

“Williams is obviously back with the Hornets after the Lakers rescinded their February trade for the Charlotte big man,” Stein wrote earlier this week. “But some rival executives expect the Williams trade market to be re-explored this summer.

“The Hornets have tried to shut down similar speculation about star guard LaMelo Ball, but the reality remains that Williams, Ball and Brandon Miller have managed to appear in the same game just 18 times over the past two seasons.”

I’ve noted in the past that it will inherently be harder to trade Williams after this debacle than it was beforehand, even though the injury concerns will always be there. The 7-foot big has played in just 41.8 percent of his team’s games in three years and is on-track to play 42 games this season.

Any team that has any desire to acquire Williams likely won’t beef up their package with those concerns–especially after the failed physical. Of course, the Hornets–plus Williams’ agent–have tried to do their best to diminish any concerns and protect their asset. But that doesn’t mean a team will be willing to fork over any sort of value–even though the 23-year-old has a relatively high ceiling when he’s available.

Report: Luka Doncic, not LeBron James, ‘handpicked’ Mark Williams for Lakers to acquire

In 35 games, he’s averaging 15.4 points, 10.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game, shooting 59.3 percent with a career-high 79.4 free-throw percentage. He still has to improve his awareness defensively, but he’s got exceptional physical traits and is a good vertical athlete.

Williams will also be due for an extension this upcoming offseason. So if a team trades for him, expect them to pay him a decent chunk of change. We’ll see if it’s the Lakers if they want to re-pursue him–or someone else who’s willing to take on the risk.

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