Aaron Wiggins Is Being Traded From The Thunder To The Hawks For Two Second-Round Picks

The Oklahoma City Thunder are trading Aaron Wiggins to the Atlanta Hawks for two second-round picks, the Hawks' 2030 second-round pick and the least favorable 2032 pick between the Hawks and Lakers, ESPN's Shams Charania reported Sunday evening.

It is the first trade of the NBA offseason and it will not be the last for Oklahoma City, which entered the summer needing to shed salary and roster spots after a season in which the rising success of second-year guard Ajay Mitchell reduced Wiggins's place in the rotation.

The financial logic of the move is straightforward. Oklahoma City was sitting at $213 million in luxury tax liability heading into the offseason.

Moving Wiggins and his $9 million salary for next season drops that number to $152 million, a significant reduction for a team that is trying to manage the tax bill that comes with being one of the NBA's elite franchises without sacrificing roster quality.

ESPN's Bobby Marks noted that Atlanta will likely need to wait until July 6 to finalize the trade using the $11 million trade exception they acquired in the Luke Kennard deal at the February trade deadline.

Wiggins is 27 years old and spent five seasons with the Thunder after being selected 55th overall in the 2021 draft.

He averaged a career-high 12.0 points per game during Oklahoma City's 2024-25 championship season, the year the Thunder won the NBA title, along with 3.9 rebounds and nearly a steal per game.

He is entering the third year of a five-year, $45 million extension, making $9 million next season, $8.2 million in 2027-28 and carrying an $8.2 million team option in 2028-29.

For Atlanta, Wiggins fills a genuine roster need.

The Hawks have been looking for wing depth that can play alongside their backcourt and provide consistent scoring off the bench.

He is exactly that, a reliable offensive player with defensive capability who found his footing across five Thunder seasons.

His arrival gives Atlanta something tangible for the Kennard exception.

The Hoops Rumors article notes that the Thunder are expected to move at least one if not multiple more players in additional money-saving transactions before training camp. This is the first domino.