Eyebrows were raised this offseason when the Charlotte Hornets splashed the cash to make Gordon Hayward one of their marquee acquisitions, but three-time NBA champion BJ Armstrong is confident the former Boston Celtic can justify the team's faith in him.
The Hornets sent a conditional 2022 second-round draft pick to the Celtics in exchange for Hayward in a sign-and-trade agreement that created an NBA-record $28.5m trade exception for Boston, who will only receive the draft pick if Charlotte finish in the top five in the league next season.
Hayward declined his $34.2m player option with the Celtics in November before agreeing a four-year, $120m deal with the Hornets following three years in Boston that had see him suffer a season-ending fractured tibia and dislocated ankle in the first game of the 2017 campaign, before struggling for production upon his return to action.