And if we offer him the super max, he’d be turning down an incredible amount of money.
But as a hornets fan im used to nothing working and everything being horrible. So Melo could just not care and want out. Doubt it, but there’s a possibility
Whether Lamelo leaves or not he is here at least 4 more seasons guaranteed. So giv8ng up on him now would be stupid
No he isn’t. This is incredibly illogical rationale. He is either going to ask for a s&t prior to his extension or shortly after signing start up the trade demands.
This team has proven one thing over the past 20 years and that is a treadmill team that moves from terrible to mediocre but never crests into contender.
I can’t imagine a player with melo’s marketability sticking around a terrible market on a losing team.
The only hope is hitting this draft and next two off-seasons and building an actually exciting young team for him to want to stay. Anything short of that is career suicide for melo.
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Both those hypothetical deals I just saw for LaMelo in the past 5 posts are atrocious for Charlotte
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Completely agree. There has to be a reason for LaMelo to stick around, beyond blind loyalty, and liking the eye catching colours of our branding.
If the Hornets don’t put a product on the floor that LaMelo can see himself at least advancing in the playoffs with, why would or should he stay? If the ownership and front office, both of which are likely to change in the next couple of years, aren’t surrounding LaMelo with players he can see building a winning team with, why would he want to stay?
This is why some of us on here have pushed so hard for a roster reset over the last couple of years. Surrounding LaMelo with a roster full of promising young players, who are developing together, assisted by a small number of high character vets to help point the way simply has to be the more attractive option to LaMelo. But time has either run out, or is rapidly doing so, on that option.
We have to add to LaMelo & Williams, that’s all the good young core we have. You could argue for Terry to be part of the core. If Cody can get healthy, you could maybe stretch to him as he’s been here a while … but that’s about it. Miles is a piece of shit, PJ is unsigned, otherwise could be included in the core. Kelly’s not been here long and is also unsigned. Bryce, Thor & Richards seem like good guys who are coming along pretty well and might well become part of the core. The totality of the above group is not exactly compelling LaMelo to commit to the front office that put the roster together.
This draft and off season are absolutely key. If we pick well in the draft and don’t overpay on the guys we bring back, we could make some noise in the playoffs over the next couple of years.
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Lamelo will resign here for the max on July 1st. Anyone that tells you otherwise has no clue what they are talking about.
As far as roster construction, that is true with any big time star. Either way we will have Lamelo for several more seasons and if we don’t then we will benefit from a bidding war.
Lamelo WANTS to be here, lets make that clear. I agree that we have to find reasons for him to stay long term past this next deal but if he requests a trade 2 years in that is not a sky is falling scenario. We should be top 4 in east next season with the right moves this offseason, although I did say that last offseason too and look what happened.
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Nobody, absolutely nobdy disputes this. It’s about him requesting a trade after doing so, which you ackowledge later in your post.
That would certainly exceed my expectations. I think top 7 would be a very, very good achievement. Time will tell.
I would heavily bet against Lamelo asking for a trade before year 3 of the new deal, and I would think the only way that happens is if team terribly misses expectations with no sunlight in sight for future. I think the Hornets organization fully understands just how important he is for everything.
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I think you sound like an inexperienced Charlotte basketball fan 
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It is never bad to have hope. Also Lamelo is different but Hornets fans talk about him like he is the most replaceable player in the league so I gotta rep the guy.
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You know what would be the most hornets thing to happen would be?
Landing the number one pick this year to invigorate the franchise. Selecting Wemby, seeing him light up summer league to generate max optimism, and then he tears his ACL the first game of the year. That would be a hornets thing to happen.
But a hornets thing to do is to skip over the long time consensus number two overall pick (scoot) because the front office is too busy worrying about “fit”. The team with the longest playoff drought skipping over the best player available.
Classic!
Wait for it.
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Heard on a podcast that Scoot doesn’t want to play for the current ownership. (Insert your personal ownership hate on here.) Talk about biting the hand that may feed (draft) you. Maybe Scoot is making the decision for everybody including the Boss and Brandon. If that is the case a lot of guys up here will still blame management not Scoot.
Seems to me the players all know what a sand trap this organization is for a basketball career.
Come on man!
Nope. I have been denying it for close to 20 years. It’s the only consistent ingredient.
I think you probably heard that he was happy to play for any potential new ownership. He was responding to a question asking if was interested in keen to play for the hornets if they changed ownership.
That’s vastly different from him saying he doesn’t want to pay for the current ownership. I can only assume that either the podcast misinterpreted his comments, or you misheard.
I’d be completely stunned if he was stupid enough to say he didn’t want to play for current ownership.
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Look man I thought this podcast was an everyday must for everyone on this board:
Start at 4:30 and you may want to sit down first.
From what I saw from a nba insider Scoot apparently would be excited to play for the Hornets due to the proximity to his hometown