Gordon Hayward has agreed to a four-year deal worth $120 million with the Charlotte Hornets, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The contract is fully guaranteed through all four years, per The Athletic‘s David Aldridge.
In order to create cap space for Hayward, the Hornets will reportedly be waiving Nicolas Batum, according to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer.
Batum, who appeared in just 22 games last season with the Hornets and averaged a career-low 3.6 points per game, had recently exercised his $27.1 million player option for next season but will soon become an unrestricted free agent instead.
After spending the past three seasons with the Boston Celtics, Hayward declined his $34-million player option on Nov. 19 to become a free agent. The New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers and Portland Trail Blazers were all reportedly considered to be in the running for Hayward’s services.
Ultimately, Hayward chose to head to Charlotte, where he signed a four-year, $63-million offer sheet back in 2014 that was eventually matched by the Utah Jazz.
Hayward signed a four-year, $127.4-million contract with the Celtics in July 2017. He played in just one game in his first season in Boston before suffering a brutal leg injury that ended his campaign.
All in all, the 30-year-old played 125 regular-season games for the Celtics, averaging 13.9 points 5.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists. He bested those averages this past season, with 17.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per contest.
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