The Thunder are trading Aaron Wiggins to the Hawks for two second-round picks, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports (via Twitter).
Oklahoma City is facing a roster crunch and a rising payroll, leading to speculation that they’d move at least one or two players this offseason without taking back any salary. In exchange for Wiggins, they’ll acquire the Hawks’ 2030 second-round pick, as well as either the Hawks’ or Lakers’ 2032 second-rounder (whichever is least favorable).
A 27-year-old shooting guard, Wiggins was the 55th pick in the 2021 draft and has developed into a valuable role player over the course of his five seasons with the Thunder. He averaged a career-high 12.0 points and 3.9 rebounds per game with a .488/.383/.831 shooting line during the Thunder’s championship 2024/25 season.
While Wiggins remained a rotation fixture in 2025/26, his playing time dipped slightly during the regular season even with star wing Jalen Williams out for much of the season, and his place in the rotation became less secure with the rise of sophomore guard Ajay Mitchell. Wiggins averaged just 5.8 minutes per game in 13 playoff appearances.
The scoring guard is entering the third year of a five-year, $45MM contract that has a descending structure. He’ll make $9MM next season and $8.2MM in 2027/28, then has an $8.2MM team option in 2028/29.
The Hawks generated an $11MM trade exception from the Luke Kennard deal at this year’s trade deadline, which they can use to accommodate Wiggins’ incoming salary. Given their financial status, they will likely have to wait until July 6 to finalize this trade and fit Wiggins into that exception, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Wiggins, who can play alongside any of the Hawks’ guards, will slot into the team’s wing/guard rotation and give them some additional firepower off the bench.
This move opens up a roster spot while also reducing Oklahoma City’s projected tax penalty from $213MM to $152MM, Marks notes (via Twitter). The Thunder will have decisions to make before the end of the month on team options for Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort, and Kenrich Williams.
