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Michael Scotto: Sources: The Orlando Magic will add DJ Bakker as an assistant coach. He was a Hornets assistant coach and head coach of the Greensboro Swarm in the G League. He’s been an assistant for the Bucks and Pistons. Bakker and Orlando Magic coach Sean Sweeney worked together in Detroit.
With Charlotte considering a starting-caliber center upgrade, other centers besides Sabonis are on their radar, including Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton, league sources told HoopsHype. In addition, it’s worth noting that the Nets have expressed interest in Hornets free agent guard Coby White in the past when he was on the Chicago Bulls, sources said. In other Hornets news, assistant coach Zach Peterson is a candidate to become the franchise’s next head coach of their G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm. DJ Bakker, who’s been an assistant coach for the Hornets and head coach of the Swarm in the G League, is a candidate to join Sean Sweeney’s staff as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic, league sources told HoopsHype.
Elliot Clough: Bennett Stirtz tells me he will be attending the NBA Draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York next Tuesday. Coach Ben McCollum will join Stirtz and his family in the green room. So far, Stirtz has worked out with the following teams: Charlotte Hornets Chicago Bulls Dallas Mavericks Memphis Grizzlies Oklahoma City Thunder Toronto Raptors He'll also workout for the Golden State Warriors prior to the draft.
Elliot Clough: NEW: Bennett Stirtz tells me he will be attending the NBA Draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York next Tuesday. Coach Ben McCollum will join Stirtz and his family in the green room. So far, Stirtz has worked out with the following teams: Charlotte Hornets, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors. He'll also workout for the Golden State Warriors prior to the draft.
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Among the most interesting outcomes that will affect the rest of the NBA will be how an expansion draft is structured -- the last time was in 2004, and it was for just one team, the Charlotte Bobcats. At that time, teams were able to protect eight players and lose only one. There is also the question of how the league will realign the conferences. Different possibilities are being discussed, including moving one team from the Western Conference to the East -- with Memphis, Minnesota and New Orleans all "competing" to do so.
The NBA and Charlotte Hornets told federal prosecutors they prefer veteran guard Terry Rozier continue to be prohibited from contacting current and former members of the Hornets while he remains out on bond and awaiting trial on four charges stemming from a federal investigation into alleged NBA gambling and insider information trading. Last week, a federal judge asked the league to weigh in as she contemplated whether to remove those bond restrictions at the request of Rozier and his lawyer, who claimed that they prevented Rozier from potentially playing in the NBA again. An attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York told Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall in a legal filing Monday that the NBA supported their desire to keep the current terms in place.
Rival teams say the Hornets are looking for frontcourt upgrades via both the draft and trade market, and could potentially move one of their two firsts (14 and 18) for the right player. Charlotte has several players on movable expiring contracts, including Miles Bridges, giving them flexibility to make deals.
Terry Rozier has pleaded not guilty to all four charges. The judge set a Feb. 8, 2027, date for trial. The NBA, however, put Rozier on leave soon after he was arrested last October. It tried to withhold his $26.6 million salary as well, but Rozier and the NBPA appealed the decision to an arbitrator, who ruled in his favor. But the league ultimately prevailed this spring when it again decreased Rozier’s salary, saying the conditions of his bond set in mid-December prevented him from fulfilling his contract. The players union and Rozier again filed a grievance; the arbitrator ruled for the NBA. Trusty said the ban on contact with the Hornets was “devastating” in the arbitrator hearing, though Hall said that argument didn’t carry far in her courtroom. Federal prosecutors had also prevented Rozier from speaking to members of the Heat organization while he was still employed by them, but lifted that last month after Rozier was waived by the team. They had also investigated whether Rozier had ever discussed his case with them.
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A federal judge has asked the NBA to weigh in on whether Terry Rozier should have a chance to play in the league next season. Rozier is not allowed to be in contact with the Charlotte Hornets while he awaits a trial for charges that he took a bribe to manipulate his performance during a 2023 game while he was with the team — one of four federal counts stemming from an investigation into alleged illegal sports gambling. A lawyer for Rozier has asked the Department of Justice and the judge to lift that provision of his release on bond, saying it effectively prevents the veteran guard from playing in the league. The judge, LaShann DeArcy Hall, said she wants to hear from the NBA before she decides what to do. The Hornets have taken no position on the request, a lawyer for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District said.
There have been multiple reports this week about Sacramento and Charlotte discussing Domantas Sabonis trade frameworks, but sources say those conversations were preliminary in nature and reflective of the Kings' desire to acquire the Hornets' No. 14 or No. 18 pick. Sources say Charlotte, though, is not currently willing to surrender either pick. I'm told that the Kings also have interest in Toronto's No. 19 selection, but it is unclear whether the Raptors, who showed trade interest in Sabonis before the league's in-season trade deadline in February, will do so again.
The judge, LaShann DeArcy Hall, said she wants to hear from the NBA before she decides what to do. The Hornets have taken no position on the request, a lawyer for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District said. The federal prosecutor, Kaitlin T. Farrell, said she believes the league prefers that the no-contact requirement not be lifted and that he not be allowed to play. Hall gave the league until Monday to file a letter to the Eastern District with its preference.
The Sacramento Kings and Charlotte Hornets had exploratory trade talks surrounding Domantas Sabonis, league sources told HoopsHype. One framework loosely kicked around included Charlotte’s Miles Bridges, Josh Green, and a potential first-round draft pick going to Sacramento in exchange for Sabonis, sources said. Charlotte has two first-round selections in the upcoming draft, including the 14th and 18th picks. However, Charlotte has been resistant to including one of those first-round picks thus far in a trade package involving Sabonis.