Former Louisville basketball star and current NBA two guard Terry Rozier will become a Charlotte Hornet in 2019-20.
It’s been a long time in the making. Former Louisville basketball guard and emerging NBA star Terry Rozier is finally getting paid.
According to a number of sources, Rozier will sign with the Charlotte Hornets for the 2019-20 season for three-years and $58 million via a sign-and-trade deal.
Rozier was a valuable asset for a Boston Celtics team that was consistently among the top five teams in the Eastern Conference during his four years with the team.
He only started 30 games during his time with the Celtics, however, he averaged over 23 minutes per game in his last two seasons, and was a huge asset during a deep playoff run in which he started in place of veteran guard Kyrie Irving in 2018.
Free agent guard Terry Rozier plans to agree to a three-year, $58M contract with the Charlotte Hornets via sign-and-trade, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2019
Heading into the season, Rozier was one of the fan favorites for the Celtics after their playoff push and his “Scary Terry” brand was soaring. However, over the course of the season, the Celtics had a ton of internal issues cause turmoil within the program, and the once favorites to win the Eastern Conference never panned out- Even with a healthy Kyrie Irving.
By the conclusion of the season, Rozier had had enough of the toxicity around the Celtics organization and made it well known that he did not want to be in Boston anymore with the way the team was currently structured.
No one could blame Rozier for wanting to move on to bigger and better opportunities. He showed that he could excel at the highest level in place of Irving in the 2018 playoffs when he dropped more than 15 points on twelve occasions, and 20 or more points six times. Rozier hasn’t gotten many opportunities since and should feel that moving towards the prime of his career it is now or never if he wants to become an elite-level NBA guard.
With the Hornets, the team dynamics will certainly be interesting in the absence of Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb. Rozier wants to be the man in Charlotte, but he will have to contend with the likes of Malik Monk, Miles Bridges, and P.J. Washington- all of whom are budding stars- and prove that he can take over and lead a team at any level.
Sure, Rozier was on a tear with the Celtics, but they have been atop their conference for years. The Hornets are likely to be around the bottom of the league, even if Rozier and a player like Washington wind up panning out.
Rozier will have to prove that he is capable of being the guy in any situation and hope to get some help from a squad that seems to be built for tanking in 2019.