By Field Level Media
Sep 27 (Field Level Media) – The Chicago Bulls are swapping former first-round pick Rob Dillingham to the Charlotte Hornets for veteran Buddy Hield and cash, ESPN reported on Saturday.
Dillingham, 21, will be on his third NBA team, while Hield, 33, was dealt earlier in the week from the Atlanta Hawks to the Hornets, along with guard Ryan Nembhard and cash, for forward Dorian Finney-Smith.
The San Antonio Spurs selected Dillingham with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft out of Kentucky and traded him the same day to Minnesota. The Timberwolves dealt Dillingham to the Bulls on Feb. 5, 2026.
The point guard averaged 9.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 21.5 minutes in 30 games for the Bulls last season as a reserve. For his career, Dillingham has averaged 5.5 points, 1.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 13.0 minutes in 114 games (one start) for the Timberwolves (2024-26) and Bulls.
Charlotte announced on Friday that second-year sharpshooter Kon Knueppel suffered a left hamstring injury during an offseason on-court activity and could miss the start of the regular season.
Hield has career averages of 14.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists. The guard/forward split last season between the Golden State Warriors (44 games) and Hawks (seven) and averaged a career-low 7.6 points per game.
Hield’s highest scoring average came in 2018-19 when he put up 20.7 per game for the Sacramento Kings.
The Bulls will be Hield’s eighth team. He has made 2,201 3-pointers, 15th-most in NBA history, while shooting 39.5% from beyond the arc.
The New Orleans Pelicans picked him sixth overall in the 2016 draft out of Oklahoma.
(–Field Level Media)
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