Buddy Hield's $9.7 Million Lands Finney-Smith in Atlanta

Photo: NBA.com. Official Buddy Hield headshot.

Atlanta traded Buddy Hield and Ryan Nembhard to Charlotte for Dorian Finney-Smith on Tuesday, with cash moving with the Hawks package.

The Hawks send Hield's fully guaranteed $9.66 million salary and Nembhard's $2.15 million expiring deal to the Hornets and take back Finney-Smith's $14.2 million cap hit, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania.

Charlotte dumps a bigger wing contract that still carries a non-guaranteed $13.3 million line for 2027-28 and pulls in a career shooter plus a 23-year-old point guard. Atlanta sheds two bodies off a 17-man summer sheet and keeps a 6-foot-7 wing who can switch with Lu Dort and Dyson Daniels. The cash amount has not been published. The confirmed board sends Hield and Nembhard plus cash one way and Finney-Smith the other.

Watch the first closeout after the whistle. Hield's gravity still bends a help defender even on a 34.9 percent three last season across 51 games at 7.6 points. Finney-Smith's job in Atlanta is the opposite end of that possession. He has to hold the strong-side wing so Daniels can roam and Dort can sit on the nail. That is the trade on the floor. Charlotte pays for shooting it never got from Finney-Smith's ankle-limited Houston year (3.3 points in 37 games). Atlanta pays for size and a cleaner roster cut before camp.

The books explain why both sides moved. Hield's $9.66 million for 2026-27 became fully guaranteed after the draft. His 2027-28 player option sits near $10.1 million. Finney-Smith signed a four-year, $52.7 million deal with Houston in 2025, then rode three second-round picks into Charlotte in July. Spotrac lists his 2026-27 cash at $13.335 million against a $14.2 million cap hit, with 2027-28 still non-guaranteed. Atlanta absorbs about $2.4 million more cap this season and gains an off-ramp next summer if the ankle file stays loud. Charlotte drops roughly that same gap and keeps Hield's option as a future decision instead of a dead wing salary it never planned to play.

Nembhard is the quiet loss for Atlanta. The Hawks added him in the July three-team deal that also brought Dort and sent Zaccharie Risacher to Dallas. At $2.15 million he was cheap third-point-guard insurance behind a packed backcourt. Shipping him with Hield solves the roster math that had Atlanta over the 15-man limit after waiving Devin Carter. Charlotte gets a 23-year-old who can run second units without burning a draft pick.

Finney-Smith's recent tape is the risk Atlanta just priced. The Lakers year still showed 8.7 points and 41.1 percent from three in 63 games. The Rockets year showed the ankle. Atlanta is betting the defender who guarded Luka and LeBron stretches still lives under the minutes plan, not the Houston stint. Put that wing next to Daniels and Dort and the help timing changes on the first side. Charlotte is betting Hield's catch-and-shoot history outruns one cold season once the Hornets space the floor for a younger core.

Southeast Division games just got a different wing matchup. Atlanta wanted off Hield's guarantee and into a bigger defender. Charlotte wanted off Finney-Smith's larger hit and into shooting plus a cheap guard. Shams put the names on the board Tuesday afternoon. The $9.66 million and the $14.2 million are the numbers that made the swap clear.

Photo: NBA.com. Official Dorian Finney-Smith headshot.

Sources

• Shams Charania on X. Hawks trading Hield, Nembhard and cash to Hornets for Finney-Smith. Sep 22, 2026, 19:52 UTC / ~2:52 p.m. CT.
• ESPN NBA buzz. Charania item under Sept. 22.
• Spotrac Buddy Hield. $9,658,536 (2026-27); $10,097,560 PO (2027-28); trade note CHA from ATL.
• Spotrac Dorian Finney-Smith. $14,196,974 cap / $13,335,000 cash (2026-27); 4yr/$52.7M; 2027-28 non-guaranteed.
• Basketball-Reference Hawks payroll. Hield $9,658,536; Nembhard $2,150,917.
• Photos: NBA.com headshots 1627741 (Hield), 1627827 (Finney-Smith).