Despite battling injuries to begin the season, the Charlotte Hornets have impressed lately, racking up big wins against some of the league's strongest teams, including a 27-point road victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Additionally, they impressed on their most recent road trip, finishing 3-2 over the five-game stretch, defeating the Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets.
Adding an impressive rookie class of Kon Knueppel, Sion James and Ryan Kalkbrenner to the young talent of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller has given Charlotte a big boost. Throw veterans Miles Bridges and Collin Sexton into the mix and the Charlotte Hornets are no longer a team to dismiss.
As a result, the Hornets' front office seems to be preparing their next move. According to NBA insider Steve Popper, the Hornets have engaged in talks with the New York Knicks surrounding the status of Karl-Anthony Towns.
While bringing Towns to Charlotte would certainly be a blockbuster move, the Hornets are quite thin at the center position.
In order to match salaries, Charlotte would likely have to trade Miles Bridges, Grant Williams, Josh Green and either Tre Mann or Pat Connaughton, assuming the Knicks are uninterested in acquiring Ball.
Future first-round picks could help entice New York. Although the Hornets have one first-rounder in 2026, Charlotte currently holds three first-round picks for the 2027 draft.
With all of that in mind, if Charlotte was able to land Towns while giving up the aforementioned players and including draft picks, it would be a massive win for the franchise.
However, New York's motivation and/or reason to want to move on from Towns remains to be seen.
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