Nicolas Batum shootaround
New York was considered a potential landing spot with Nicolas Batum being shopped, as SNY’s Ian Begley explained Wednesday, but the Knicks do not appear to be a final destination the for Charlotte Hornets wing.
According to a Twitter report Sunday afternoon by Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, the Hornets waived Batum.
Batum did not take long to land elsewhere. A subsequent tweet Sunday afternoon by Charania added that Batum plans to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Batum, whose 32 birthday is Dec. 14, was connected to the Knicks as a potential trade partner taking on his salary. He became expendable after the Hornets reportedly agreed last Saturday to a four-year, $120 million deal with Boston Celtics free agent small forward Gordon Hayward.
A 13th-year pro entering the 2020-21 season, Batum is set to make $9 million in base salary. Batum is under contract through 2022-23.
With the Hornets in 2019-20, Batum averaged a career-low 3.6 points and shot 28.6 percent on three-pointers while starting 3 of 22 games, logging 23.0 minutes. In 308 games (286 starts) on the Hornets from 2016-20, Batum averaged 12.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.9 assists while shooting 34.8 percent from three-point range over 32.2 minutes.
