Sources: Nicolas Batum to re-sign with Hornets
Free-agent forward Nicolas Batum has agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal to re-sign with the Charlotte Hornets, league sources told The Vertical.
Batum will have a player option in the fifth year of the contract, sources told The Vertical.
Batum and his agent, Bouna Ndiaye, had a lengthy meeting early Friday with the Hornets to finalize the deal.
Batum, 27, averaged 14.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists in 70 games for the Hornets last season.
Batum was the franchise’s primary priority this offseason, and team executives traveled to Dallas to meet him and his agent, Bouna Ndiaye, once free agency began. Batum gives coach Steve Clifford stability on the wing and was one of the best two-way players on the market.
Charlotte acquired Batum last summer in a trade with Portland, where he spent his first seven seasons. The Hornets were 48-34 this past season and earned the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, pushing the Miami Heat to seven games in the first round.
Batum, a native of France, has averaged 11.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in his NBA career. He was the 25th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft.
Batum will be able to officially sign his deal when the NBA’s free-agent moratorium ends July 7.
The Hornets also hope to re-sign forward Marvin Williams but expect guard Courtney Lee to sign elsewhere, sources said.
