Boston Celtics: 3 trade destinations for Tristan Thompson

Boston Celtics trade partner No. 2) Charlotte Hornets

Over the past couple of seasons, the Charlotte Hornets have become a consistent trade partner for the Boston Celtics. In 2019, it was the sign-and-trade that sent Kemba Walker to Beantown. In 2020, it was the sign-and-trade that brought Gordon Hayward to North Carolina.

Now, in 2021, perhaps the two parties can keep the ball rolling with a move intolving Tristan Thompson.

When Hayward opted to head to Charlotte for a lucrative $120 million deal, many deemed it to be one of the worst signings of this past offseason, with Bleacher Report going as far as to say it was the worst.

Now, through 33 games played, it appears as though the forward has managed to live up to his pay day thus far — something, unfortunately, Cs fans were not able to say during his time spent in Massachusetts –, posting averages of 21 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.3 steals per game on 48 percent shooting from the floor and 41 percent shooting from deep.

With his play alongside the emergence of Rookie of the Year front runner LaMelo Ball, the Hornets find themselves in the sixth seed out in the Eastern Conference standings at 19-18 and, in turn, look to be in a legitimate position to snap their four-year playoff drought.

To strengthen their odds of such an occurence, however, they’ll likely want to bolster their lackadasical frontcourt rotation. Because of this, Thompson, who was the starting center of the 2016 NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers while also having played in three other Finals apperances in such a role, could be a cheap and intruiging option for the franchise to consider.