Charlotte Hornets will sign Gordon Hayward, plan to waive Nic Batum for cap space

The Charlotte Hornets need stars, and to add one they plan to lop off the biggest salary on the roster.

Free agent forward Gordon Hayward has come to terms with the Hornets on a 4-year, $120 million deal. Per an NBA source, the Hornets would create enough cap space to sign Hayward by waiving Nic Batum. The Hornets would then use the NBA’s stretch provision to spread cap implications of Batum’s $27 million salary over three years.

Hayward confirmed his intention to sign with the Hornets in a Twitter post Saturday: He created a photo illustration of himself in Charlotte’s new teal pinstripe uniform. He added the words, “To the city of Charlotte, I can’t wait to start the next chapter of my career! I am ready to play for another incredible organization with the Hornets. Let’s get it!”

Hornets guard Terry Rozier, who played with Hayward on the Boston Celtics, greeted Hayward on Twitter: “@gordonhayward welcome to the wild side! Let’s eat” followed by three hornets.

Hayward opted out of the final $34 million season on his contract with the Celtics to become a free agent. Among his other suitors when free-agency began Friday: The Indiana Pacers, the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks.

While the Hornets’ intention is to waive Batum and stretch his contract, the Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach reported on Twitter Saturday night that a Celtics-Hornets sign-and-trade is still being discussed.

Such a trade could avoid the Hornets having to stretch Batum’s salary, which would cut their cap flexibility by about $9 million each in 2021-22 and 2022-23. It would also allow the Celtics to get some sort of compensation for losing Hayward.

It’s unknown what the Hornets might be willing to send to the Celtics to make such a deal happen. The Hornets and Celtics did a mutual sign-and-trade before last season, swapping Kemba Walker and Rozier.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the Hornets’ agreement with Hayward on Saturday afternoon.

Hayward enters his 11th NBA season with career averages of 15.3 points and 4.4 rebounds. The 30-year-old, 6-foot-7 forward fills an obvious hole for the Hornets: A primary scoring option and a secondary ballhandler. The Hornets have always been attracted to his skill set; they signed him to a maximum offer sheet in 2014, when he was a restricted free agent, that the Utah Jazz matched.

Gordon Hayward’s college teammate

This is the biggest free-agent signing for the franchise since at least 2013, when the then-Bobcats added center Al Jefferson, who went on to an All-NBA season in Charlotte.

The current Hornets coaching staff has an immediate connection with Hayward: Assistant coach Ron Nored was a college teammate of Hayward’s at Butler. Hornets owner Michael Jordan personally made a recruiting pitch to Hayward late Friday night, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Hayward’s role with the Celtics shrunk somewhat the past two seasons with the emergence of young wing players Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. He has also gone through injuries — a gruesome fracture and dislocation in his left leg in 2017, and an ankle sprain in August that cost him a month of the NBA restart.

When then-general manager Rich Cho recruited Hayward to Charlotte in 2014, the word “connector” — as in a playmaker for himself and others — was used constantly to describe Hayward’s value. The Hornets are young and starless after they didn’t re-sign All-NBA point guard Walker after the 2018-19 season.

Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak frequently says this team’s greatest need isn’t positional, it’s collective talent. Kupchak added two major pieces in four days: The Hornets used the third overall pick in Wednesday’s draft to select point guard LaMelo Ball.

Shooting and ball-movement both rival rebounding as the Hornets’ biggest flaws. Hayward shot 37% from 3-point range last season and averaged 4.1 assists.

Hayward has played both small and power forward for the Celtics. The Hornets have started Miles Bridges at small forward the past two seasons, which has been an awkward fit. Bridges’ best NBA position long-term might be as a small-ball power forward.

A potential Hornets starting lineup could be: Ball and Devonte Graham in the backcourt, Hayward and P.J. Washington at forward and Cody Zeller at center.

Nic Batum’s departure

Batum’s five-year, $120 million contract, signed in the summer of 2016, made him the highest-paid team-sport athlete in Charlotte history. He has been a disappointment in productivity, as he acknowledged to Observer columnist Scott Fowler in March.

Batum fell out of the Hornets’ rotation entirely in late January when coach James Borrego went ever-more heavily with youth. Batum never played in his last 19 games with Charlotte.

The Hornets started free agency with roughly $20 million in space under this season’s $109 million cap, after blocking out the approximately $8 million Ball will make under the NBA’s rookie pay scale. That wouldn’t be enough to sign Hayward to this contract.

Waiving Batum and stretching the remaining $27 million would give Kupchak access to about another $9 million in space under the cap. However, it would reduce Charlotte’s cap flexibility in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

The Hornets still have a chance to be under the cap next summer, with the final $15.4 million of Zeller’s contract coming this season. Kupchak must decide whether to try to extend Graham’s contract before he becomes a restricted free agent after next season. Also, Malik Monk would likely become a restricted free agent after this season.