OKC Thunder Acquire Former All-Star Gordon Hayward
The Oklahoma City Thunder have made a trade with the Charlotte Hornets to acquire former All-Star forward Gordon Hayward.
Oklahoma City will send Vasilije Micic, Tre Mann, and Davis Bertans along with draft compensationcto the Hornets for Hayward. This gives the Thunder a scoring punch and play-finisher off the bench to complement the secondary unit in exchange for two non-rotation options.
Hayward also brings postseason experience, playing in 29 playoff games, including the Eastern Conference Finals in 2020.
The 33-year-old has played in 25 games this season, averaging 14.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.6 stocks per game, shooting 46 percent from the floor, 36 percent from beyond the arc and 76 percent from the charity stripe.
Hayward has not seen game action since Dec. 26 with a calf injury but was upgraded to questionable on Wednesday before sitting out again.
This is a no-risk, high-reward move for the Oklahoma City Thunder. They are giving up two players who do not factor into their rotation and one who plays light minutes for a veteran who, on paper, addresses two of their needs in scoring and experience.
Tre Mann heads to Charlotte, getting a fresh start to prove himself. Many believe Mann can pop as a scorer in the NBA, and now he will be able to show it. Given Bertans' contract structure, he acts as an expiring. The Hornets can cut the sharpshooting veteran for just $5.25 million dollars this summer.
Hayward is owed $31.5 million dollars this season, and will hit unrestricted free agency this summer. He becomes the oldest player on the Thunder roster with this trade.
After the initial trade reporting did not include Micic, the Thunder still needed to make up salary. While Aleksej Pokusevski would have worked, or expanding this to a multi-team deal, the Thunder elected to send the two-time EuroLeague MVP.
Micic earned more minutes of late, but is still trying to find his footing in the NBA. The Hornets will likely be able to give him a more consistent role in their rotation, while the Thunder will zap his minutes to give to Hayward.
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