March 22, 2023 – Charlotte Hornets President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Mitch Kupchak announced today the team has signed center Nick Richards to a multi-year contract extension. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
In 58 games (five starts) this season, Richards is averaging career highs in points (7.9), rebounds (6.1), blocks (1.1) and minutes per game (18.2). For his career, Richards has appeared in 126 games (10 starts), recording 5.0 points (62.9 FG%) and 3.6 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per game.
The Hornets acquired Richards, who was originally selected by the New Orleans Pelicans in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2020 NBA Draft, via a draft night trade in exchange for a 2024 second-round draft pick. Richards signed a multi-year contract with the Hornets on Nov. 30, 2020.
Richards played three seasons (2017-20) at the University of Kentucky, averaging 7.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 18.2 minutes per game across 105 contests (70 starts). As a junior in 2019-20, he posted 14.0 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game to lead the Wildcats to a regular-season SEC championship.