Hornets Considered a 'Long Shot' to Land Donovan Mitchell

The Hornets could use the star guard but it's unlikely to happen.

It's been a very active offseason for the Charlotte Hornets but not so much in the way of building the roster. They've had to go through two coaching searches after firing James Borrego and have seen two of its players, Montrezl Harrell and Miles Bridges, arrested.

In the earlier stages of the offseason, Hornets GM Mitch Kupchak made it clear that he wouldn't make any significant moves via trade or free agency. 

"The thing we have to be careful about is thinking we're better than we really are," the Hornets GM stated. "We're not a team that's going to get into the Finals. Although Atlanta got into the Conference Finals a year ago, I don't know how realistic that is. What I'd like to do with this team is I'd like to get us into the playoffs and wouldn't it be great to win a round? And then anything after that would probably be gravy. You've got to be careful that you don't make moves to try to mosey the progress along, quicker than is realistic. 

The goal was to retain Bridges, Cody Martin, and Jalen McDaniels while adding talent through the draft. That philosophy had to have changed immediately after finding out about Bridges' off-the-court incident. As of Thursday morning, the Hornets have yet to withdraw the qualifying offer for Bridges, maintaining his status as a restricted free agent.

One player that could help the Hornets take that "next step" and has been recently made available via trade is Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz. Given the situation surrounding Bridges, this team needs to go out and be aggressive on the trade market. A backcourt duo of Mitchell and LaMelo Ball would be entertaining to say the least. The problem is the Hornets may not have the most intriguing assets to offer Utah.

The New York Knicks are the favorite to land the 25-year-old star, according to The Action Network. Below you'll see the Hornets listed as a possible destination, although the odds are not in their favor whatsoever.

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