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Hornets Nightly Desk · transactions · Monday, September 21

DJ Armstrong joins the Charlotte Hornets

Free agentCharlotte Hornets
DJ Armstrong
G · 24 · rookie
The move
Joins the Hornets
official roster · Sep 21, 2026
2026-27 cap hit
Not on file yet
public salary data lags a signing by a day
Hornets payroll
$177.1M
over the cap · cap $165.0M · tax $200.4M
Roster
21 players
standard limit 15 + 3 two-way
By the Hornets Nightly Desk · 2 h ago

DJ Armstrong is on the Charlotte Hornets' roster as of Monday, Sept. 21, according to the official roster. The 24-year-old rookie guard arrives via free agency, and his contract is not on file yet.

The move

DJ Armstrong, a 24-year-old rookie guard, is on the Charlotte Hornets' roster. He arrives from free agency, having held no prior NBA roster spot. The move was detected from the official roster on Monday, Sept. 21. No report preceded the move; none is logged for this transaction, so there is no outside source or confidence level to cite ahead of the roster listing itself.

The money

Armstrong's contract is not on file yet; public salary data can lag a signing by a day. The Hornets carry a payroll of $177.1 million across 18 contracts for 2026-27. That is over the $165.0 million salary cap but under the $200.4 million luxury tax line, with the first apron at $209.0 million and the second apron at $221.7 million.

The fit

Armstrong has no NBA line from last season. He joins a backcourt led by LaMelo Ball, who logged 28.0 minutes and 20.1 points last season, Collin Sexton at 22.3 minutes and 14.2 points, and Sion James at 22.5 minutes and 5.4 points. The Hornets now carry 21 players on the roster, against a standard limit of 15 plus three two-way spots.

Where does DJ Armstrong come from?

Free agency; he had no NBA roster spot before joining the Hornets.

What is DJ Armstrong's contract with the Hornets?

Not on file yet. Public salary data can lag a signing by a day.

How big is the Hornets' roster now?

21 players, against a standard limit of 15 plus three two-way spots.

Was DJ Armstrong's move to Charlotte flagged in an injury report first?

No. No report preceded the move; none is logged for this transaction.

By the Hornets Nightly Desk, from the data on this page, rewritten when the data changes. How the desks work.
No contract on file yet: public salary data usually catches up within a day.

Hornets rotation

tracker →
Kon Knueppel31.5 min · 18.5 pts
Brandon Miller30.3 min · 20.2 pts
Grayson Allen28.8 min · 16.5 pts
Royce O'Neale28.4 min · 9.8 pts
Naz Reid26.1 min · 13.6 pts
Moussa Diabaté26.0 min · 7.9 pts

Moves are detected from the official rosters, so the mechanism (trade, signing, waiver claim, two-way conversion) comes from the linked report when there is one. Salary figures are cap hits from public salary data.