Gordon Hayward completed a sensational move away from the Boston Celtics and joined Charlotte Hornets on a massive deal. The 30-year-old amassed a unique record with his new contract, and Celtics’ General Manager has revealed that he saw it coming a few months ago! 

Well, not many expected Hayward to choose Charlotte as his next destination. The Celtics failed to retain him while the Hornets came out second time lucky in their attempt to land Hayward. 

“I was anticipating the possibility for the last few months,” Ainge told reporters when asked if he predicted Hayward’s departure. 

The Hornets and Celtics completed a sign-and-trade deal, which resulted in Boston receiving a record-breaking $28.5 million trade exception. However, Hayward enticed other teams as well besides Charlotte and the Indiana Pacers were one of them. But letting him go was never the #1 option. 

“We knew what the risks were and we knew what all the options were…we thought that any one of those options were good, but our number one option was for Gordon to come back,” Ainge mentioned.

Boston Celtics GM expresses his gratitude to Gordon Hayward

Hayward’s Celtics debut did not get off in the best of ways. A horrendous incident dislocated his ankle, and he missed out on the entire 2017-18 season. However, the Indiana native came back strong the next year and performed well for the Celtics. 

His chapter in Boston comes to a close after three long years, and he leaves the team having earned massive respect. The same flows within the front office as well, and GM Danny Ainge put forth his appreciation for the 2017 All-Star.

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“I’m grateful that Gordon chose Boston and I wish him nothing but the best,” Ainge began. “He’s a great guy, terrific player, and I’m grateful that Gordon missed the birth of his son and came to play and help us even though he was less than 100% in the playoffs. He made sacrifices…”

Ainge, a former Celtic himself, dismissed rumors that might suggest Gordon Hayward left the team due to issues over his role. He was a starter in the team, but the spotlight was on the younger stars in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. 

“He’s [Hayward] very unselfish, so he doesn’t want to take all the shots. He just wanted to be involved more. We have a lot of good players. I think if you asked each one of them, they’d like a bigger role,” he mentioned. 

Gordon Hayward did not achieve his primary goal with the Celtics, which was to win the championship. He averaged 13.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in his three-year stint with the 17-time NBA champs.