Now riding an eight-game win streak, Charlotte is buzzing like it’s 1999. The Hornets continued their win streak last night, defeating the Houston Rockets in what was a bell-to-bell domination. The final score of 109-99 doesn’t tell the story of the game; the Hornets led by as many as 22 points in the second half.

Prior to last night's Houston game, the NBA trade deadline was in full swing this past week, and it was a busy one. Stars like James Harden and Anthony Davis were traded from the Western Conference to the East this week, along with other significant moves made around the league. There were a few moves that didn’t happen, even though fans were watching all week long for stars to be on the move. Stars like Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies and, most notably, Milwaukee Bucks cornerstone Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Antetokounmpo was heavily rumored with multiple teams, including the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves, but outside of those two, there were sleeper teams that may not have gotten as far in talks, but did pick up the phone; one of those teams was Charlotte.

While talks never reportedly got too serious, Charlotte was a sleeper. ESPN’s Ramona Shelbourne talked about how the Hornets were a sneaky team to watch, saying, “I think there are other teams that we have not talked about that would be very surprising, that are also making calls. I think Charlotte is an interesting team. I’ve heard that name out there.”

A Giannis trade to Charlotte would most likely have centered on forward Miles Bridges, along with other pieces to make the salary work, such as Collin Sexton and significant draft capital. While Giannis to Charlotte certainly wouldn’t have made Charlotte worse, the Hornets made the right call backing away from getting too serious.

Charlotte has everything moving in the right direction right now: an eight-game win streak, has just drafted one of the two best rookies in this loaded class, Kon Knueppel, and has just made one of the best moves at the deadline. Charlotte traded away Sexton and just-here-for-a-minute Ousmane Dieng for former Chicago Bulls guard Coby White, a younger, more consistent scorer and three-point threat than Sexton was.

Now just wasn’t the time to make a huge swing at someone who’s going to take away all the draft capital the organization has and take up a large portion of cap space. The idea of swinging for a big-name player is something Charlotte would be better off doing in the offseason, after they’re able to evaluate the holes in the roster based on how far they go this season.

Not only was it not the right time, but Giannis isn’t even healthy right now; he’s out with a calf strain, keeping him off the court for four-to-six weeks. As recent history has shown, calf strains can lead to much more serious injuries, specifically a torn Achilles.

The Hornets are the hottest team in the NBA, and while someone like Giannis Antetokounmpo is enticing, Charlotte’s playing the long game, and the blueprint is starting to show signs of success.