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**girllovesthegame** · 09-30-2007, 12:38 AM

Wow. Looks like this topic has brought a few visitors to the Hornets forum today.

Here's more on this topic.

N.O. to focus on frontcourt, give flexibility to salary cap

With the addition of veteran Melvin Ely, it appeared forward Cedric Simmons was probably going to have a difficult time earning minutes as a Hornets backup this season.

So Hornets General Manager Jeff Bower decided on Saturday to part ways with Simmons, trading him to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for the contract of former Hornets guard David Wesley and cash considerations.

Under the terms of the trade, Wesley will be waived by the Hornets if Simmons passes his physical to finalize the deal. Wesley, whose contract is not fully guaranteed, was not expected to play for the Cavaliers this season. He played for the Hornets from 1997-2005.

"This trade will help us in a number of areas heading into training camp," Bower said. "We will be able to focus on developing the additions we've made to our frontcourt, and it gives us increased flexibility in regards to salary cap management and room to add to our roster if we see fit."

Simmons was set to make $1.6 million this season and the Hornets had the option to extend his contract after the season.

From the trade, the Hornets slightly lowered their payroll as they are only responsible for a portion of Wesley's $1.8 million partially guaranteed contract. The Hornets have 13 players under contract and can sign up to 15.

The Hornets also could be looking to extend a contract to one of the free agents they plan to invite to training camp or they might pursue bringing back P.J. Brown, who has not finalized his decision to retire yet. Bower declined comment about any potential roster moves.

Earlier this month, the Hornets signed Ely to strengthen their frontcourt that already includes starting power forward David West, starting center Tyson Chandler and second-year backup center Hilton Armstrong.

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**Pimped Out** · 09-30-2007, 01:17 PM

do the hornets have any plans to bring wesley back as an assistant?

**girllovesthegame** · 09-30-2007, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pimped Out

do the hornets have any plans to bring wesley back as an assistant?

I don't think so. However, I wouldn't be surprised if P.J. Brown ended up working with the front office.

**RebelSun** · 10-02-2007, 02:58 PM

Unless the Hornets brass know something about Simmons, this is the most nonsensical trade I've seen in some time. They're just giving away value for, restrictive cap management or not, little money. I like Cedric more than Hilton long-term by a decent margin.

I haven't been a big fan of their moves the last few years, giving 8-figure salaries to specialists in Peja and Tyson.

**girllovesthegame** · 10-02-2007, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RebelSun

Unless the Hornets brass know something about Simmons, this is the most nonsensical trade I've seen in some time. They're just giving away value for, restrictive cap management or not, little money. I like Cedric more than Hilton long-term by a decent margin.

I haven't been a big fan of their moves the last few years, giving 8-figure salaries to specialists in Peja and Tyson.

Maybe they do. I'm pretty sure they've been seeing more of Cedric than both you and I have. Perhaps they think it may have been a mistake selecting him at #15. The Hornets need to win and they need to win NOW. Both Byron Scott and Jeff Bower knows this. Cedric is full of potential. Could be full of potential that never even gets tapped. But the Hornets would rather have roster/cap space to pick up someone down the line that may help them get over that hump. Might be better to have that than to have a guy on the end of the bench that may not be able to contribute right now. Right now the Hornets have seen more improvement in Hilton than they have in Cedric. Teams do this sort of thing all the time but since the Hornets have done it, people are acting like it's the end of the world and the worst move they've ever seen.

**girllovesthegame** · 10-02-2007, 03:22 PM

For all we know, while they aren't sniffing the lux tax right now, they could be contemplating a move that may have lux tax implications somewhere down the line and this may help them. Again, we don't know. I'm pretty sure they have something in mind though. I liked Ced but I'm not sweating this one bit.

bee-fan · 10-02-2007, 05:24 PM

I hated to see them give up on Ced so soon, but if he wasn't going to play I'd rather him go to a team that will play him. He have a lot of potential and he could turn into something special in the years to come. Now my son will have to find a different player to look for on the court. First it was the Birdman and we know what happened to him. Now when we look at the games, he asks where's the Grasshopper. I'll have to find him a new player this year with a cool nickname.