Ace Bailey Reportedly Focus of Trade Talks as Teams Eye Hornets' No. 4 Draft Pick
Rutgers star Ace Bailey is one target in mind for teams looking to make an aggressive trade up in the first round of the 2025 NBA draft, according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony.
Givony reported Wednesday on NBA Today that "there's a lot of talk out there that there are teams looking to move up, possibly to four with Charlotte." Hornets executive vice president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson told Givony Charlotte is open to dealing the No. 4 overall pick for the right offer but could keep the selection and take Bailey themselves.
Because of how he has handled the pre-draft process, Bailey is a tough prospect to read.
The 6'8" forward averaged 17.6 points on 46 percent shooting as a freshman with the Scarlet Knights. He earned an endorsement from 15-time All-Star Kevin Durant in December.
But Bailey has canceled workouts, while his representatives have reportedly told anybody who's interested that they want him to have a "pathway to stardom both with minutes and opportunities."
To that end, Givony reported Wednesday there's a general belief around the NBA that Bailey "has received assurances of being selected by a team considered more advantageous to Bailey in the long term, considering factors such as geography, minutes, role, opportunity and development."
Givony and colleague Jeremy Woo projected him to go to the Washington Wizards with the No. 6 pick, which matches the final mock draft from Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman.
Bailey only has so much leverage in this situation. There's little he can do if he winds up on a team not on his short list.
But head coaches and general managers will be wary of using a top-10 pick on a player they haven't seen work out in person. In addition, any partnership is bound to start on a bad foot when one of the parties doesn't want to be there.
From the Hornets' perspective, it might be difficult to use Bailey's name to influence any trade market when he's seemingly trying so hard to tip the scales toward a preferred destination.
