The Hornets aren't ready to trade Born Ready. Charlotte has pulled Lance Stephenson off the trading block "for now" after being less than impressed with the trade offers for the enigmatic guard, reports ESPN's Ramona Shelbourne and Chris Broussard.
Hornets yank Lance Stephenson off the trading block ‘for now’, according to report
The Charlotte Hornets are hoping their starting guard can recover from a groin injury after having a tepid reaction to trade inquiries.
Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports
A groin injury that has cropped up has only added to the Hornets’ desires to retain Stephenson. Charlotte’s front office is hoping that holding him out for a few games will be enough for Stephenson to recover. A healthier Stephenson, the team hopes, will either help Charlotte climb up the Eastern Conference standings or give it a more tradable asset, ESPN reports.
Miami and Brooklyn reportedly inquired about Stephenson, and apparently even the Pacers had interest in re-acquiring him, but few teams were willing to discuss offers.
Whatever was on the table apparently wasn’t enough for the Hornets to consider any deal. Just this week, reports surfaced that they had been gauging other teams’ interests in acquiring Stephenson, who left the Indiana Pacers this offseason to sign a three-year, $27 million contract in Charlotte.
The thought was that Stephenson would complement point guard Kemba Walker and center Al Jefferson. Instead, Stephenson has been part of a bigger problem.
After a career year for Indiana last season (13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.6 assists on 49 percent shooting), he’s averaged 10.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists but shot 39 percent from the floor.
Fairly or not, Stephenson has become the scapegoat as Charlotte has fallen to a 6-19 record on the year.
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