The offseason is here for the Hornets. Several ‘big’ decisions await Charlotte’s brass
Inquiring words barely finished rolling off the tongue and Jusuf Nurkic was in full reminder mode, recalling the exact thoughts he uttered two months ago.
That’s when the Charlotte Hornets center was discussing his family’s excitement level, explaining how they’re thrilled the Bosnian was on the East Coast and not west of the Mississippi River.
“I told you last time, they are so happy about it,” Nurkic said in a chat with The Observer. “They are watching, especially when it was a five-hour difference with the time zone, now it’s six hours with the (daylight savings time).
“Everybody from back home and Europe, they are really happy about it. Especially 1 p.m. games. They watch it like it’s a 7 p.m game at home. I’m more in contact with family and everybody and it’s much easier I would say.”
Which is among the many reasons Nurkic, who got the starting nod in Sunday’s 93-86 loss to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden in the 2024-25 regular-season finale, doesn’t want to go anywhere else. And he made that crystal clear.
“Hopefully, it’s a two-way street and the organization feels the same way, but so far so good,” Nurkic said. “Hopefully, we can build something special for years to come.”
Acquired from Phoenix along with a 2026 first-round pick just prior to the NBA trade deadline in February in exchange for Cody Martin, Vasa Micić and a 2026 second-round pick, Nurkic’s arrival was originally due to the Hornets sending Mark Williams to the Los Angeles Lakers for Dalton Knecht and draft pick compensation. However, that deal got nixed because the Lakers failed Williams’ physical, creating an awkward situation.
Williams never fussed about it, though and his relationships with many in the organization weren’t overly affected. But his status in Charlotte has question marks surrounding it.
“I think for me, it’s just taking it a day at a time,” Williams said. “Obviously, be prepared for whatever. Obviously, this is where I’ve been since the start of my career. At the same time I’ve learned it’s a business, being traded and then coming back for reasons above me. So, yeah, I think it’s definitely understanding the balance of it being a business and enjoying your teammates and people you’ve made great connections with.”
That doesn’t mean Williams’ preference is to bail on the Hornets, leaving behind the franchise’s young core featuring LaMelo Ball, Bradon Miller and Miles Bridges. He’s as disappointed as anyone that things haven’t gone well during his tenure with the Hornets, which has compiled a record of 67-179 and averaged only 22 victories a season.
“Obviously, you want it to work,” Williams said. “But at the same time, you’ve seen it with different teams. You just never know. Obviously, would I want it to? Of course. But at the same time, this year especially, I’ve learned not everything works out the way you want it to. So, I think it’s just being prepared for whatever.”
Nurkic’s future will depend on what — if anything — the Hornets do with Williams. His fourth-year option was picked up back in the fall, locking him in at $6.2 million in the final season of his rookie contract, and he’s eligible for a rookie extension. However, his value likely took a hit just from headlines created by the rescinded trade and he’ll probably have to build it up again due to logging 44 games this season and only 106 total since coming on board from Duke in 2022.
With Nurkic scheduled to pocket $19.3 million in the last season of a four-year, $70 million contract inked while with Portland in 2022, that’s a hefty salary for someone who’s not a starter. Plus, Charlotte also likes Moussa Diabate, who developed enough in his third season in the league to have his two-way contract converted into a standard NBA deal.
Factor in all that and there’s some uncertainty about which direction the Hornets intend on going with their depth at the center spot. But there’s little confusion in how Nurkic wants things to unfold over the coming weeks.
His preference is to set up shop in Charlotte beyond this season.
“For sure, I mean I’m all in,” Nurkic said. “Like I said, I feel from my standpoint that I care, that I want to be here. I embraced the city, embraced the team and players, coaches, fans. So, to me, I showed my willingness to stay long term. But like I said it really doesn’t matter if it’s not a two-way street.
“So, hopefully the organization feels the same way, and when it’s the right time they will talk about that. But my heart and my standpoint is I want to be here long term.”
The player with the most tenure on the team wouldn’t mind it, either.
Just having that type of presence in the locker room helps,” Miles Bridges said. “We’ve got young bigs on our team in Mark and Moussa, and they need a veteran presence. They’ve already got Taj (Gibson) and I think Nurk brings a different aspect. It’s good to have those types of teammates in the locker room.”
Chalk it up as one of the among the many franchise-defining decisions the Hornets must make in yet another important offseason that is going to go a long way in determining whether the NBA’s longest current playoff drought gets extended to a full decade — or if Charlotte hosts its first home postseason game since April 29, 2016, when Dwayne Wade went wild after being heckled by the infamous ‘Purple Shirt Guy.’
The Hornets are officially in planning and evaluation mode now.
“I think the biggest part is just debriefing,” coach Charles Lee said. “Figuring out what went well during the season, what do we want to try to revamp or change and how are we going to do those things? So, I think it’s a well, better, how system. What did we do well, what do we want to do better and how are we going to do it?
“And I think part of that debrief has to be with the coaching staff, has to be with the players, that has to be with the front office so that we take this holistic view to keep moving forward.”
This story was originally published April 13, 2025 at 4:28 PM.
