Other GMs had their eyes on the Charlotte Hornets/Cody Zeller negotiations — if he became a restricted free agent next summer, teams felt they might be able to poach him.
Those teams are going to be disappointed.
Via Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical at Yahoo Sports.
Charlotte's Cody Zeller has agreed to a four-year, $56M extension, league sources tell @TheVertical.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 1, 2016
That’s a good price for a starting center (who may someday come off the bench, but will be a part of the rotation).
Zeller can do a little bit of everything on offense but none of it exceedingly well. He has a midrange game, he sets a strong pick and rolls hard to the rim, he can rim-run in transition, and he knows how to draw contact. He’s a banger, but with a little finesse to his game. It’s not pretty, but the Hornets were 2.8 points per 100 possessions better with him on the floor last season.
In today’s NBA, $14 million a season for a solid, starting big man is a fair price and Zeller locks in a nice payday. It works for both sides.
Charlott now has their core — Nicolas Batum, Kemba Walker, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, etc. — and Steve Clifford likes that group.