Jordan’s timing to sell the Hornets leaves team in limbo
CHARLOTTE
The timing of Michael Jordan’s decision to sell his majority ownership stake in the Charlotte Hornets has left the organization in flux, with several looming key personnel decisions.
The Hornets have the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft on June 22 night. They also have some difficult decisions to make in free agency in early July, including whether to re-sign embattled restricted free agent Miles Bridges.
With the NBA’s Board of Governors unlikely to approve the team’s sale to an ownership group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall until at least another month or two, the question becomes who will sign off on general manager Mitch Kupchak’s potentially franchise-altering decisions this summer.
Will it be Jordan, a lame duck majority owner? Or will the new ownership have a major input? Jordan will remain on as a minority owner after the sale is approved, so he still has a vested interest in the organization.
Bobby Marks, a front-office insider for ESPN, said the timing of the announcement makes this an unusual situation.
“Whether it’s Mitch or Michael making the decisions, I think you have to keep these guys from the new ownership group in the loop,” Marks said. “... At the end of the day, they don’t technically have a say in anything yet, but I would think they have to be part of the conversation, particularly when it comes to taking on future money.”
On the surface, the No. 2 pick wouldn’t be a complicated one, with the Hornets likely choosing between G League star Scoot Henderson and Alabama’s Brandon Miller.
But Marks said the trade rumors swirling around the New Orleans Pelicans potentially being open to moving former No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson to secure the second or third pick in the draft complicates things for the Hornets.
Essentially, would a trade that has long-lasting implications sit well with new ownership?
“If they have a chance to move out of the two spot, what happens when you have salary involved that stretches past this year, which means money out of their pockets? I would think you would want to get [the new ownership group’s] blessing before taking on money like that,” Marks said.
ESPN commentator Jeff Van Gundy believes the toughest decision ahead involves whether to re-sign Bridges.
A former first-round pick out of Michigan State, Bridges had a breakout season in 2021-22. He led the team in scoring and rebounding and appeared on the verge of a huge payday last summer before felony domestic violence charges put his career on hold.
The 25-year-old Bridges wound up pleading no contest to the charges and agreed to three years of probation. He missed all of last season.
The NBA ultimately determined Bridges will serve a 10-game suspension once he returns to the league. The league officially suspended him for 30 games, but determined 20 games of the suspension have been served because Bridges already missed all 82 games in 2022-23.
“There is more to that [decision] than just basketball,” said Van Gundy.
