As exciting as the NBA trade deadline can be from afar, some trades that are meant to upgrade a team's roster result in difficult decisions that are forced to be made inside front offices.
For the Oklahoma City Thunder this year, it was letting go of Tre Mann.
The 23-year-old has spent all three of his seasons in Oklahoma City since bing drafted with the No. 18 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, quickly emerging in his rookie year as a solid piece in the guard position.
Unfortunately for Mann, as his career has progressed, his playing time has only lessened. It's partly due to some consistencies in scoring the ball, but also an overall roster improvement for the Thunder has decreased his role on the team.
Due to these circumstances, Oklahoma City found in its best interest to trade Mann as part of the package to acquire Gordon Hayward, a longtime veteran who will add playoff experience to a roster full of young talent.
Mann has only played in 13 games this season with averages of 3.8 points and 1.5 assists in 9.2 minutes per game, getting little opportunity to showcase his skillset. He's been efficient in the small amount of minutes he's gotten though and could certainly blossom on a new team.
Even through a complete role change and lack of opportunity, Mann has demonstrated nothing but class during his tenure in Oklahoma City. He's put the team's needs over his own when most players at his age would not, and his teammates have made it known how strong his work-ethic is in the gym and during practice.
Those traits will translate well to a Charlotte Hornets team that is finding itself in a desolate place and in need of any impact players it can get. Although going from a championship contender to a team at the bottom is tough for any player to adjust to, the newfound opportunity could seriously benefit Mann.
The only competition at the guard position in Charlotte is between Ish Smith, Seth Curry and another former teammate involved in the Hayward trade: Vasilije Micic. While these are solid players to compete with, Smith is approaching the end of his long career and Curry could be a potential buyout candidate. Micic is a little more competition, but as displayed with the Thunder, both guards can co-exist together on the same court.
Mann fits the mold of a true bench "spark plug" that could give one of the league's worst offenses a substantial boost. In stretches he can takeover games with his smooth ball handling and flashy scoring, which could breathe some life into the Hornets.
Plenty of time still remains for Mann to grow into the clear potential he possesses, and what he can accomplish in Charlotte could lead to much bigger things in the future for himself.
As he said on X after the trade news broke, it's "forever love" between Oklahoma City and Mann.
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