Hornets acquire Collin Sexton from Jazz for Jusuf Nurkic, 2nd-round draft pick, AP source says

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Charlotte Hornets acquired guard Collin Sexton from the Utah Jazz for center Jusuf Nurkic and a future second-round draft pick, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Sunday.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been made official by the NBA.

Sexton, a seven-year NBA veteran, played in 63 games last season for the Jazz, averaging 18.4 points and 4.2 assists per game. His best NBA season came in 2020-21 when he averaged 24.3 points and 4.4 assists for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Jazz drafted Walter Clayton in the first round and also have Isaiah Collier and Keyonte George in the backcourt, making Sexton expendable.

Nurkic was acquired in a trade with the Suns last year, so this will mark his return to Utah. He played in 26 games and averaged 9.2 points for Charlotte.

The move leaves the Hornets particularly thin at center.

They traded away center Mark Williams on the first night of the NBA draft and also dealt away Nick Richards last year. That potentially leaves 6-foot-9 Moussa Diabate as the team’s starting center, although the team did draft 7-footer Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner in the second round.

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