Before the end of 2014-15 NBA season, a Lance Stephenson trade is one most people have expected. Ever since the shooting guard moved to Charlotte Hornets from Indiana Pacers, his career and stock spiraled down. Now, he will get a new lease in life as it has been confirmed that he will move to Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Matt Barnes and Spence Hawes. This trade news was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski.
"Sources: Hornets undecided about whether they'll keep Matt Barnes for next season, when he's due $3.5M in the final year of his contract." - Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) junio 16, 2015
While fans expected Lance Stephenson trade all along, what does the front office think about it? What prompted them to give away the 24-year old who clearly has a high ceiling in terms of potential?
Talking to the press after the Lance Stephenson trade new broke out, Charlotte Hornets general manager Rich Cho said the move was made simply because he is not fitting in with the team's system. Before Lance came, Hornets made it to the playoffs and lost in the first round versus Lebron James-led Miami Heat. This season, they are miles away from clinching the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
"Sometimes when you make a trade or a signing it just doesn't work out well," Hornets general manager Rich Cho said in a conference call. "He never fit in great.
"Sometimes you don't know how (a player) will fit until he plays for your team."
He also said that Lance Stephenson trade is something they contemplated with the help of a philosophy from team co-owner and arguably NBA's greatest player Michael Jordan.
"There were no directives to trade Lance," Cho said. "Just talking philosophy, what M.J. said is important: Give (an acquisition) some time to work out, but if it doesn't work out, move on."
As for Lance Stephen, he quickly turned to Instagram after learning about the trade and sent Charlotte Hornets fans his gratitude for giving him a chance.
"Thank you to buzz city and the Hornets organization. While the past year didn't work out as I hoped it would, I really enjoyed my time in the city of Charlotte. I will thoroughly miss the Hornets fans and my teammates who were very supportive of me over the last year. I wish the Hornets success going forward and I'm looking forward to doing whatever I can to help bring a championship to Los Angeles and Clipper Nation"
