The Hornets added Coby White and Mike Conley Jr. in exchange for point guard Collin Sexton, forward Ousmane Dieng and three second-round picks.
The Charlotte Hornets improved their roster without having to make a drastic change to their core.
Adding point guard Coby White to the fold instantly adds credibility to Charlotte’s second unit, and the impact he’ll have on the floor is a significant upgrade over the player he was traded for in Collin Sexton.
Sexton’s presence as a locker room leader will be sorely missed as someone who brings the attitude to a young team and helps them find their voice.
He brought the juice, and he understood the pain this franchise has endured over the years, telling the media after the Spurs win that this team is “tired of being told they’re so close.”
Alas, getting to that next level, may have been at Sexton’s expense, which is why the Hornets brought in White, who for the past two years has been as efficient of a point guard as possible.
Sexton, on the other hand, while he posed significant cultural value, on the floor, he was a major source of inconsistency.
Both White and Sexton played both point guard and shooting guard, but the majority of their minutes came at the point.
What has made the Hornets such a special commodity is the resurgence of LaMelo Ball.
The talent was always there, but as we all know his history, Ball spent large portions of his early career sidelined by injuries.
Which is why the Hornets had to get this right.
Hypothetically speaking, let’s say Ball goes down for an extended amount of time. Next in line probably would’ve been Sexton, who the numbers did not favor.
As good of a veteran presence Sexton was, he actually was a net negative for the team when Ball came off the floor.
Per Cleaning the Glass, as a point guard, Sexton’s efficiency was at a -4.8, while ranking in the 23rd percentile in points per 100 possessions, 26th percentile in effective field goal percentage, and in the third percentile in turnover percentage.
Even more so in expected wins, CTG had listed Sexton as a -15, which was third worst on the team.
Now, conversely, Sexton was a highly effective shooting guard, whenever he was slotted in that role. The difference was though, that he had played 72% of his minutes manning the point.
When analyzing his replacement White, the numbers are night and day. White played the 1 and the 2, but he primarily played the 1, and that’s where he played his best basketball.
As a point guard, White’s efficiency was at a +3.8, ranking in the 76th percentile in turnover percentage, 82nd percentile in points per 100 possessions, and the 97th percentile in effective field goal percentage.
Not only that, when White was on the Chicago Bulls, he instantly made them better, giving them a +13 expected wins rate.
All this being said, Charlotte adding White is massive for its playoff chances, because it gives the team a chance to stay afloat when their best player is off the court.