Biggest Winner and Losers from NBA Free Agency

The “Just for the Clicks” Team

The Hornets gave $120 million over four years to Gordon Hayward, according to ESPN’s Adrain Wojnarowski. Spending that much dough on a guy who hasn’t been healthy over the past three years has left some NBA insiders scratching their heads.

The argument against this is that, low market franchises like Charlotte, have to over pay on free agents to even have a chance. That may be true, but what other team would have paid Hayward $120 million?

He has constantly been hurt during his three years in Boston. He’s clearly not the same player he was in Utah. And even in Utah, Hayward wasn’t this superstar that everyone seems to make him out to be. He was an all-star. He was a good all-around player, capable of being the best player of a playoff team. That’s it.

So why did Charlotte go big in signing Hayward. Well, they did it for “the clicks.” They signed Hayward to spark some interest in their franchise. Hayward makes the Hornets interesting for the first time in a long time. He puts them in playoff contention this upcoming season. Maybe the Hornets can get the seventh of eight seed and Hayward can return to the all-star he was in Utah? Is that wishful thinking? 100%

Hayward’s going to want to prove not just to the world but to himself that he’s still an all-star, and what does that mean? That means he’s going to want the ball in his hands all the time. He wants to be the face of the Hornets, so what does mean for LaMelo Ball, the Hornets first round draft pick?

Ball was drafted with the intention that he would be given the keys to the franchise. With the Hayward signing, that has all changed.

Going into the NBA draft, one of the criticisms against Ball is was his work ethic. If he doesn’t get what he wants, will he mentally check out and complain? Only time will tell.

Their are many unanswered questions for Charlotte, but if anything, Hayward makes the Hornets a watchable team, which hasn’t been said about Charolette for awhile. Maybe that’s why Michael Jordan, the owner of the Hornets, decided to spend big on Hayward. Adding Hayward makes the Hornets an interesting, young team for the first time in a long time.

It’s hard to knock Charlotte for trying to improve. Tanking has become a joke in the NBA, and it can be refreshing to see franchises do their best to become a better team. Having said that, it just doesn’t make sense to pay a guy who clearly hasn’t been the same over the past three years, all star money. Especially when they have a group of young talented players who would benefit the most from playing together.

The Hornets have been stuck in the middle ground of the NBA for what seems like their entire existence, and that is mediocrity. The Hornets are always on the cusp of the playoffs, never an actual contender, or are near the bottom of the standings, never in full on tank mode. That’s the worst spot to be in the NBA: right in the middle. They never really seem to have a plan for the future. The Hornets will be in the playoff mix in the East and a fun team to watch on NBA league pass, but that’s about it.