Charlotte Hornets Could be in for a Treat in NBA Free Agency

At the NBA trade deadline, the Charlotte Hornets acquired Coby White in a deal with the Chicago Bulls, sending Collin Sexton and other pieces to the Bulls in the trade.

Now, it should be noted that at the time, White was nursing a calf issue, an injury of which the Hornets clearly did not know the extent at the time. As a result, Charlotte amended the deal with Chicago, removing one second-round pick from the package.

Recently, though, White appears to be healthy, and it's paying dividends.

The 25-year-old is averaging 21.8 points over his last four games, scoring 27 points twice during that span. He is also shooting the ball incredibly well, having shot well over 50 percent in three of those contests.

The Hornets have been rolling in the meantime, most recently routing the Sacramento Kings by 44 points on Tuesday night.

Is it solely because of White's production? No, but you can bet that he has played a significant role, and it seems pretty clear that when healthy, his ceiling appears considerably higher than Sexton.

Here's the catch, though: White is headed toward free agency this offseason, and there have been questions as to whether or not Charlotte will be able to re-sign him.

Heading into the 2025-26 campaign, there had been rumblings that White would land $25-30 million annually on the open market, but based on how much time he has missed this season, it stands to reason that he could be had on a bargain.

In fact, last month, Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus said he felt White might even struggle to get the $15 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception from other teams in free agency, which would be fantastic news for the Hornets.

Charlotte definitely wants to keep White, and White, a North Carolina native and UNC product, would surely love to stay with his hometown team. The question is whether or not another squad will come in and blow White away with an offer.

Based on White's overall struggles this season, the chances of that happening seem rather slim, and in that case, the Hornets could be sitting pretty.

While Charlotte may not have been fully aware of White's injury when it acquired him, it surely did not trade for him just to let him walk this summer.

And when you consider how well the Hornets have been playing for several months now, they surely see a path to contention ahead, and White is almost certainly a part of those plans.

Taking everything into account, I could see a scenario in which White — who is clearly enjoying his time in Charlotte — actually takes a bit less than expected to stay with the Hornets, who can offer him more than any other club to begin with.

If that occurs, Charlotte will be very happy.

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