NBA free agency: Nicolas Batum re-signs with Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets have re-signed free agent forward Nicolas Batum to a five-year deal
The talent pool in 2016 NBA free agency is undoubtedly quite high this year, but there are also quite a few upper-tier players on the open market that really need to be in the right situation to maximize their effectiveness. One free agent that would seemingly help whatever team he elected to sign with, though, was veteran forward Nicolas Batum coming off of a fantastic year with the Charlotte Hornets. The question was where he would go if he chose to leave.
That’s no longer a question, though, as the Frenchman decided just to stay put—for a pretty penny of course.
As reported by Shams Charania of The Vertical, the Charlotte Hornets have agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal with Nicolas Batum:
Free agent Nicolas Batum has reached agreement with Charlotte on a five-year, $120 million deal, league sources tell The Vertical.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2016
This is obviously a huge signing for the Hornets, but not one that should come as too much of a surprise if you ignored all of the noise immediately before the start of free agency.
Right after the season ended for the Hornets, there was a lot of talk about Batum’s impending free agency. However, the forward expressed his desire to continue playing in Charlotte under head coach Steve Clifford. It’s only been in the past few days that reports have seemingly changed.
But now Nicolas Batum will get his wish as he’s staying put with the Hornets. Considering that the Hornets were heavily in the playoff mix last season, Charlotte is definitely sitting pretty already with moves still left to be made this offseason.
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