2:44pm: The Hornets have officially waived Iwundu, according to a press release from the team.
1:11pm: The Hornets will finalize their regular season roster by waiving swingman Wesley Iwundu, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Iwundu, who will turn 27 in December, has been in the NBA for four seasons after being selected 33rd overall in the 2017 draft by the Magic. He spent his first three years in Orlando, then played for the Mavericks and Pelicans in 2020/21. In 223 total games (16.8 MPG), he has averaged 4.3 PPG and 2.4 RPG on .407/.286/.799 shooting.
The Pelicans sent Iwundu to Charlotte this summer as part of the Devonte’ Graham sign-and-trade. Iwundu was a late addition to the deal for salary purposes, as his inclusion allowed New Orleans to create a significant trade exception. With the Hornets carrying 16 players on guaranteed contracts this fall, Iwundu always seemed to be the likeliest victim of the club’s roster crunch.
Charlotte will take on a $1,824,003 cap hit for Iwundu, assuming he goes unclaimed on waivers on Wednesday. The Hornets now have 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-way deals.
I thought theh could use him as depth on the wing behind their other guys, but if they stay mostly healthy, they should mostly be ok. They do have a lot of bigs on this roster though