August 6, 2021 – Charlotte Hornets President of Basketball Operations & General Manager Mitch Kupchak announced today that the team has officially acquired Mason Plumlee and the draft rights to JT Thor from the Detroit Pistons. In exchange, Charlotte sent the draft rights of Balsa Koprivica to the Pistons.
An eight-year veteran, Plumlee averaged 10.4 points, a career-high 9.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 26.8 minutes per game in 56 games during the 2020-21 season. Last season, Plumlee recorded a triple-double vs. New Orleans on Feb. 14 and at Toronto on Mar. 3 as he was just one of four centers to post multiple triple-doubles.
The former Duke product has appeared in 588 career regular season games, averaging 8.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 22.1 minutes per game with Brooklyn, Portland, Denver and Detroit. During his career, Plumlee has also played in 60 career postseason contests, accruing averages of 3.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 14.9 minutes per game.
Thor, the 37th pick out of Auburn in tonight’s draft, averaged 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in minutes per game, making 27 appearances during his lone season with the Tigers. He recorded 37 blocks during the 2020-21 season, which ranked eighth in the SEC and second among all SEC freshmen as he averaged 9.9 points and 6.1 rebounds in 24.4 minutes per game in 18 conference games.
Koprivica, the 57th pick out of Florida State, averaged 9.1 points and 5.6 rebounds in 19.5 minutes per game in his sophomore season with the Seminoles. The 7-1 center played two seasons at Florida State and is a native of Belgrade, Serbia.
With today’s official announcement, Thor will join the Hornets Summer League roster for the MGM Resorts Summer League 2021.
Memberships to the newly rebranded Hive Society and Pick 23 Plans for the 2021-22 season are on sale now. Hive Society Memberships, which include all 43 regular-season and preseason games, start at $48 per game on average in the lower level and as low as $12 per game on average in the upper level, and include some of the best benefits in all of professional sports. Pick 23 Plans include Opening Night and 22 additional games of the purchaser’s choice, along with playoff priority and interest-free payment plans. Hornets fans can get lower-level tickets with this plan starting at $64 per game on average and upper-level tickets starting at $14 per game on average. For more information, call 704.HORNETS or visit hornets.com/tickets.