The Charlotte Hornets must hope that Nicolas Batum will sign quickly and not wait to see what Kevin Durant is going to do.
The off season could turn ugly for the Charlotte Hornets if all of the free agents walk away from the team. The one player who the Hornets are supposed to lock down isNicolas Batum. The Hornets have advantages of being able to sign Batum to a max deal for an addition year more than any other team could.
That does not mean that other teams are not looking at Batum as well. The Golden State Warriors are likely to engage in theKevin Durantsweepstakes.If they were to failto get Durant, they might target other players at the small forward position like Batum and their own free agentHarrison Barnes.
The issue that this brings us is how long Batum will wait before he signs in free agency. The Hornets would want to lock him down right away so they can move on to their other free agents. However if Batum has any interest in the Warriors (two trips to NBA Finals in last two years) then he would have to wait for Durant to make a decision first before he would sign a contract.
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Hopefully Durant will move fast with his decision, but he has set up meetings with a number of teams. Alternatively Batum could just sign the Hornets deal as the best money option that he is going to get.
The one thing that the Hornets may not have considered is life without Batum. The shooting guard pool is not set up to replace Batum. The Hornets can find scorers at the position, but not the kind of ball conduit that Batum offers.
Defensive guards are also available in the form of bringing backCourtney Leeor having Aaron Afflalo opt out of his deal with the Knicks. The Hornets are going to do their best not to have Batum leave that big hole in their system.
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