The Charlotte Hornets have traded Gordon Hayward to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Tre Mann and Dāvis Bertāns, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
About an hour-and-a-half later, Woj reported the updated trade details. The Thunder were about $7M short originally, leading to them including Vasilije Micić and draft compensation in the deal.
The Charlotte Observer’s Rod Boone reported this morning that Hayward’s time with the Hornets was “up,” and it seems his reporting was correct. The 33-year-old’s tenure in Charlotte ends halfway through his fourth season, and now he will play out the end of a four-year, $120M contract he signed back in 2020 with the Thunder.
The return for Charlotte looks great on the surface — a rookie-scale guard with upside, draft pick(s), and matching salary for an injured, expiring veteran? Not a bad haul for Mitch Kupchak. Moving Terry Rozier and Hayward for a first and Tre Mann is solid asset management during a firesale.
Mann is averaging a career-low 9.2 minutes per game in 13 appearances with Oklahoma City this year, also playing in a couple G League games with the OKC Blue. The third-year Florida State product holds career averages of 8.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists on 39.7% shooting from the field. The Thunder selected Mann with the 18th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Bertāns, now in his eighth season, has averaged 7.6 points and 2.5 rebounds while shooting 41.7% from 3-point land while competing in 15 games this year. Only averaging 6.1 minutes per game, by far a career-low, Bertāns adds a layer of shooting versatility to the frontcourt, and gives insurance in the event PJ Washington is dealt before today’s 3:00 PM trade deadline. The 32-year-old sharpshooter has one more year left on his deal, a $16M player option that he’s guaranteed to accept this summer.
To Hayward’s benefit, he doesn’t have to give up any money in a buyout, and still gets to play for a contender down the stretch. Win-win for all involved. Credit to Kupchak and his staff for getting this trade done and avoiding a buyout.
