Former Toronto Raptors first-round pick Malachi Flynn back in NBA with new deal
Former Toronto Raptors first-round pick Malachi Flynn is heading back to the NBA.
After starting off the 2024-25 season in the G League with the Austin Spurs — affiliated with the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs — Flynn has inked a new deal that could see him play top-level basketball in the near future.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Flynn is signing with the Charlotte Hornets on a 10-day contract, enabling a return back to the NBA late in the regular season.
The Charlotte Hornets are signing guard Malachi Flynn to a 10-day contract, sources tell ESPN. Flynn has played for the Austin Spurs in the G League this season and now enters his fifth NBA season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 28, 2025
Flynn, a 2020 first-round pick by the Raptors out of San Diego State, never quite reached his full potential in Toronto. Across four seasons with the team, he averaged 5.4 points, two assists, and 1.8 rebounds in 175 games for the Raptors in his career.
In December 2023, he was sent alongside Precious Achiuwa and OG Anunoby to the New York Knicks in one of the biggest deals in franchise history, where they received RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley in return.
He played just 14 games for the Knicks, eventually getting flipped to the Detroit Pistons later that season. While he only lasted 24 games in Detroit, he had one of the most shocking games in NBA history, putting up a career-high 50 points in a loss to the Atlanta Hawks, the only time in his career he’s topped 30 points in a game.
Charlotte isn’t exactly making the move for Flynn as part of a playoff push this late in the season, however. They currently sit 14th in the NBA’s Eastern Conference — one game behind the Raptors — with a record of 14-44 this season.
The Hornets have five games in that 10-day window, though it could extend to six if they officially make the move on paper sometime tomorrow. Flynn could first suit up for Charlotte tomorrow at 6 p.m. EST when the Hornets take on the Washington Wizards, the only team in the NBA with fewer wins this season.
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