Apr 9, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz guard Collin Sexton (2) brings the ball up court while being defended by Portland Trail Blazers forward Rayan Rupert (21) in the first half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images

Charlotte Hornets' Collin Sexton trade is still one of the NBA's most lopsided

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Sep 2, 2025 2:31 PM ET

The Charlotte Hornets have historically been on the wrong side of plenty of trades, especially those that occur on or right after draft night. As one of the NBA's most maligned franchises, they're usually the losers of whatever trade they find themselves involved in.

That's not really the case anymore. They made a few trades during the 2025 offseason, none of which seemed unfavorable to Charlotte. One of them was exceptionally favorable to the Hornets, though. So much so that one insider ranked it the fourth-most lopsided deal that went down this offseason.

Hornets praised for 'most lopsided' Collin Sexton deal

The Charlotte Hornets traded Jusuf Nurkic for Collin Sexton this offseason. That alone would be a pretty solid win for the team, because Sexton is the better player and he provides a much-needed boost of offense.

But the fact that the Hornets also got a 2030 second-round pick, which will be the most favorable out of either the Utah Jazz or Los Angeles Clippers, is a steal of epic proportions.

"Conventional wisdom suggests that if you're getting the better player, on the better contract, you should be the one sending out draft equity," Bleacher Report analyst Dan Favale said. "Congratulations to the Hornets for middle-fingering conventional wisdom."

While the move did make the Hornets incredibly guard-heavy and without a legitimate center whatsoever, Favale believes that "doesn't matter." The value Sexton brings along with the pick is just too good of a deal.

"A career 38.6 percent shooter from distance, Sexton improves both the spacing and secondary ball-handling around LaMelo Ball. He's also $400,000 cheaper than Nurkić and more likely to net positive value if the Hornets move him in another deal," Favale said.

The insider added that Utah clearly wanted to move Sexton to open minutes for some younger players on the perimeter, like Walter Clayton Jr. It also stands to reason that they wanted the top scorer on offense to be Ace Bailey, so Sexton had to go.

Still, Favale thinks it's nonsensical. "This trade doesn't make sense even by that logic. Including the pick, at the very least, was overkill," he concluded. No matter what happens, this looks like a huge fleece for the Hornets' front office.