During the offseason, the Charlotte Hornets swung a rather intriguing trading, sending Jusuf Nurkic to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Collin Sexton.

The move was widely lauded at the time due to Sexton generally being considered the more valuable player in today's space-and-pace era, plus the fact that Sexton would provide LaMelo Ball with a terrific offensive partner in the backcourt.

But is it possible that Sexton won't be long for Charlotte?

Bryce Simon of The Game Theory Podcast recently floated the possibility of Sexton being traded this season, noting that he could help a contender get to the playoffs.

“Maybe he’s an earlier trade candidate for a team that needs to win some regular-season games and then knows that maybe he becomes a little bit of a liability in the playoffs,” Simon said. “He can score the basketball. He’s averaging almost 20 a game right now on crazy efficiency. He at least competes on the defensive end. He’s on an expiring deal. I feel like that’s a guy that some contender out there, whether it’s injury or otherwise, is going to go get.”

Sexton is averaging 17 points and 4.2 assists over 25.5 minutes per game on 56.1/52.9/85.3 shooting splits through six games thus far during the 2025-26 campaign.

While his defense leaves much to be desired, Sexton has always been a good scorer and has definitely improved upon his efficiency in recent years.

The 26-year-old averaged over 18 points per game in each of his last two seasons with the Jazz and owns very solid career 47.1/38.9/83.8 shooting splits.

Sexton was originally selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the eighth overall pick of the 2018 NBA Draft and spent his first four seasons with the Cavaliers, registering a hefty 24.3 points per game during his third year in the league.

The University of Alabama product was traded from Cleveland to Utah in September 2022 in a deal that sent Donovan Mitchell to the Cavs.

Considering that the Hornets are not genuine contenders just yet (although they could push for a playoff spot), it might make sense for them to flip Sexton for a young player and a draft pick before the NBA trade deadline.

The fact that Sexton is slated to hit free agency after the season makes this even more plausible.