Hornets Waive Drew Peterson

The Hornets have waived forward Drew Peterson, the team announced in a press release. Peterson was on a two-way contract, so Charlotte’s 15-man standard roster remains full but one of the team’s three two-way slots is now open.

A 26-year-old who went undrafted out of USC in 2023, Peterson spent most of his first two NBA seasons as a Celtics two-way player before reaching a deal with the Hornets this past summer. In 34 appearances across parts of three seasons for Boston and Charlotte, he has averaged 2.1 points and 1.5 rebounds in 8.0 minutes per contest.

While Peterson made just six brief appearances off the bench for the Hornets this fall, he averaged 32.1 minutes per game in nine outings for the Greensboro Swarm, Charlotte’s G League affiliate. The 6’8″ forward put up 14.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.9 steals per game at the NBAGL level, though his 42.5% field goal percentage and 30.0% mark on three-pointers were below his usual rates.

Because Peterson was waived prior to the league-wide salary guarantee date of January 7, he’ll only receive a prorated portion of his two-way salary, while the Hornets open up a two-way spot alongside guards KJ Simpson and Antonio Reeves.

Charlotte will have plenty of time to fill that two-way opening — teams can sign players to two-way contracts all the way up to March 4.