Naz Reid’s first summer as a Hornet is already turning heads.
A new video of Reid working out ahead of next season is the kind of thing Charlotte fans wanted to see after the team landed him from the Minnesota Timberwolves in the blockbuster LaMelo Ball trade. Reid is coming in with a reputation for putting in serious work, and Charlotte is planning to have him in the starting five next season after he spent his Minnesota years coming off the bench.
That role change comes with a résumé that already carries real weight. Reid won the 2023-24 Sixth Man of the Year award and heads into next season with career regular-season averages of 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. In the playoffs, he has averaged 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
His final season with Minnesota gave a fuller picture of what Charlotte is getting. Reid put up 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game while shooting 45.6% from the field, 36.2% from 3-point range and 73.2% from the free-throw line. He also finished with six double-doubles.
Reid is set to make $23,275,862 next season, and the Hornets have already held onto him despite multiple teams trying to pry him away.
He also recently described the moment he learned the trade was happening. In an interview with Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer, Reid said he was headed to the Bahamas when the news broke.
“I was on my way to the Bahamas,” Reid said. "I just checked my bags, I left the greeter service.
As soon as I sit down on the plane, I get the phone call from my agent and the GM in Minnesota. And I’m looking at the phone, but I already knew what it was about, you know what I’m saying?
So, at that time I was going to get off the plane and try to figure stuff out.
“At that point, I’m with my family. I’m like, ‘Bro, I’m just going to go enjoy family time with them.
And then when I get back, handle business from there.’ The initial phone call from my agent a couple days before, it was a little shocking.
But it’s a business, and it’s kind of how it goes.”
In Other News...
Hornets Face A Big Brandon Miller Decision Before His Price Changes
Brandon Millers place in Charlottes future is suddenly one of the biggest questions hanging over the franchise. With LaMelo Ball gone, Miller is expected to step into a much larger role, and the Hornets have every reason to treat the next stretch of his career as a referendum on what kind of centerpiece he can become.
The contract side of that equation may be trickier than it first appears. NBA insider Zach Lowe has raised doubts about Charlotte simply handing Miller a max extension, suggesting the sides could end up negotiating toward a deal closer to Amen Thompsons range, while Miller continues rehabbing from left shoulder surgery and has not yet been cleared for basketball activities. For a team trying to map out its next core, the timing makes the decision even more delicate. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Add Another Young Guard With A Bigger Camp Question
The Hornets kept turning over the back end of their offseason roster by adding another young guard in Bez Mbeng, the undrafted Yale product who has already logged time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce and spent part of a season with the Utah Jazz on 10-day contracts before landing a rest-of-season deal. Charlotte made room for him after waiving Kobe Stewart, another sign that the team is still sorting through developmental options as camp approaches.
Mbeng looks like the kind of player the Hornets want in their pipeline, someone who can slot into the system and spend time with the Greensboro Swarm if everything lines up. The catch is in the paperwork and the path forward, because an Exhibit 10 setup would only be part of the equation and Greensboro would still need to secure his returning rights from Sioux Falls before that next step becomes official. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Fans Are About To Learn What Coby White Changes Most
Coby White arrives in Charlotte with a very different job description from the one LaMelo Ball left behind. After the trade, White is expected to be the primary player running the offense, and that shift alone tells you the Hornets are moving into a new kind of tempo and structure. He brings a steadier style, one that can help organize possessions and keep the offense from veering off track, even if it does not look as explosive or improvisational as what the team had before.
The bigger question is how much that steadiness changes the Hornets overall identity. Whites game should give them a firmer offensive floor, but the tradeoff is that he is not the same kind of dynamic facilitator Ball was, which means the ceiling may come down with the volume of creative playmaking. Charlotte will have to adjust around him, and the real answer on this move probably will not come until the offense has had time to settle into its new shape. [Read more 🡒]