Duke basketball champion coming back to North Carolina in bizarre trade

A former Duke basketball champion is returning to North Carolina in a bizarre trade. 

The NBA news was flying fast and furious prior to the official start of the NBA Draft, and one former Duke basketball star saw himself traded back to the state of North Carolina.

Mason Plumlee called Durham his home for four years, and now he will call Charlotte his home as the Detroit Pistons traded the forward to the Hornets, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Plumlee signed a free-agent deal with the Pistons during last offseason, which was for three years and worth $25 million, but never seemed to mesh with the organization as Detroit is in full rebuild mode.

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The Pistons won the NBA Draft Lottery and selected Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham with the No. 1 overall pick on Thursday night.

However, the trade was a bit bizarre because the Pistons had to surrender Plumlee and the No. 37 overall pick to the Hornets for the No. 57 overall pick.

Detroit drafted former Washington center Isiah Stewart last season and is looking to get a younger roster while Charlotte is hoping to return to the NBA Playoffs next year after losing in the NBA Play-In Tournament this season.

Former Duke basketball center ready for another new home

The Charlotte Hornets will be the fifth team Mason Plumlee plays for in his NBA career after being drafted by the Brooklyn Nets in 2013.

Plumlee had his best season, scoring-wise, last season when he tied a career best in points per game with 10.4 per contest.

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Prior to signing with the Pistons last summer, it seemed Plumlee found a home in Denver playing alongside eventual NBA MVP Nikola Jokic for three and a half seasons.

Mason Plumlee will now join a frontcourt that includes former Blue Devil Vernon Carey Jr., a second-round pick of the Charlotte Hornets last season.