Hawks sign forward Wesley Iwundu to 10-day contract with hardship exception

The Hawks have reached an agreement to sign free-agent forward Wesley Iwundu to a 10-day contract using a hardship exception, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

According to Wojnarowski, Iwundu will officially sign on Thursday before Atlanta’s game in Philadelphia, which means he won’t be available for Wednesday’s home game vs. Orlando.

Iwundu, who turned 27 on Monday, spent his first four professional seasons in the NBA after being selected 33rd overall in the 2017 draft by the Magic. He was in Orlando for three years, then played for the Mavericks and Pelicans in 2020-21. In 223 total games (16.8 MPG), he has averaged 4.3 PPG and 2.4 RPG on .407/.286/.799 shooting.

The Pelicans sent Iwundu to Charlotte in August as part of their Devonte’ Graham sign-and-trade and he was subsequently waived in October by the Hornets, despite having a fully guaranteed salary for 2021-22. Iwundu has been a free agent since then.

The Hawks have three players – Trae Young, Clint Capela and Danilo Gallinari – in the health and safety protocols and have reached deals with three replacement players this week. Lance Stephenson and Malcolm Hill are also reportedly signing 10-day deals with Atlanta.