The Charlotte Hornets have one of the most unfortunate histories of any franchise in the NBA, as they haven't won a playoff series since 2002. However, they have two talented young pieces to build around in guard Kon Knueppel and forward Brandon Miller, who helped them notch their best record (44-38) since 2015-16 last season.
The Hornets are so confident in that duo that they traded 2022 All-Star guard LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday. They also sent guard Josh Green in exchange for big man Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps (2028, 2029, 2030) and three second-round picks (2029, 2032, 2033), per ESPN's Shams Charania.
Charlotte made NBA history, per ESPN's Bobby Marks.
"The Hornets have the second most firsts among teams. They create a $40.7M trade exception, the largest in league history," he reported.
Hornets Can Use Trade Exception to Add Key Piece
Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images
Trade exceptions allow NBA teams to trade for a player or players with salaries adding up to however much the exception is worth without adding to their salary cap. In this case, the exception matches Ball's 2026-27 salary and the average salary of his five-year, $203.8 million contract. Charlotte signed the California native to the franchise-record designated rookie extension in June 2023.
The Hornets sent out about $55.3 million in salary after combining Ball with Green's expiring deal. Reid has a $23.2 million cap hit for next season and is entering the second year of a five-year, $125 million deal. The 26-year-old has a $28.4 million player option for 2029-30.
Charlotte now has more financial flexibility and assets that it can use for another trade. Its next move could be dealing forward Miles Bridges, who is on an expiring contract and averaged 17.1 points on 46% shooting (33.3% 3-point) with 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists over 31 minutes (77 games) last season.
The Hornets acquired Bridges from the Los Angeles Clippers on draft night in 2018 after the latter team took him No. 12 overall. They also drafted Ball No. 3 overall in 2020, who averaged 20.1 points on 40.7% shooting (36.8% 3-point) with 4.8 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 1.2 steals over 28 minutes (72 games) last season. He finished ninth in the NBA in assists.
Meanwhile, Reid could start at power forward or center for Charlotte next season alongside Miller and Kneuppel. The 26-year-old averaged 13.6 points on 45.6% shooting (36.2% 3-point) with 6.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists, one block and one steal over 26.1 minutes (77 games) for the Timberwolves last season.
