Ben Gordon to the Bobcats: How Charlotte Got This One Right

According to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, the Charlotte Bobcats and Detroit Pistons have agreed on a trade, which sends Ben Gordon and Detroit's 2013 protected first-round pick to the Bobcats in exchange for Corey Maggette.

Ford writes that "the first-round pick going to Charlotte is lottery-protected in 2013, top-eight protected in 2014, top-one protected in 2015 and unprotected in 2016."

Score this trade in favor of the Bobcats.

The Pistons are likely going to remain a lottery team for at least the next two years, just because teams in the Eastern Conference are improving at a faster rate than they are. 

With Miami, Chicago, Indiana, Philadelphia and New York as playoff locks and Boston, Washington, New Jersey and Atlanta definitely in the hunt in the future, the East is looking very deep.

While giving up Gordon did free up cap space for the future, the cost might have been too high. 

On the other side, Charlotte acquired a proven scorer in Gordon, who never seemed to get in rhythm in Detroit. He could definitely average 20-plus points and will complement Kemba Walker well. 

At this point, gaining any veteran pieces is a step in the right direction for the Bobcats, just because they are barren of proven players. 

Charlotte GM Rich Cho definitely needs to be applauded in this case due to his patience in slowly rebuilding this roster. While it might take five to seven years for the Bobcats to return to the playoffs, accumulating first-round picks is the way to go.

Look for Cho to continue dealing, as he reportedly could send the No. 2 pick to Cleveland for the No. 4 and No. 24 selections in Thursday's draft, according to Ford's article.

Trade Grades:

Detroit: C
Charlotte: B+