The Atlanta Hawks came into the 2022 NBA offseason looking to shake up their roster. They made two trades, acquiring Dejounte Murray from the San Antonio Spurs and trading Kevin Huerter to the Sacramento Kings. Numerous other trade scenarios were discussed, and throughout all of those talks, only two players were seemingly off the table; Trae Young and De’Andre Hunter.
Young not being included makes sense. He is the face of the franchise and an All-Star point guard. Hunter is the perfect player to have around him with his 3-and-D style of play. However, as the offseason moved along, Hunter seemed to move closer to being moved.
As training camp got underway, Hunter’s name began popping up in some trade rumors as the deadline for working out a rookie extension was quickly approaching. But, at the last second, a deal was struck to keep Hunter in Atlanta.
The Hawks and Hunter agreed to a four-year, $95 million deal ahead of the 6 PM ET deadline that was set for rookie extensions to get done. Hunter was beginning to find his stride last season, averaging 13.4 points per game on 37.9 percent from 3-point range.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: De’Andre Hunter & Atlanta Hawks Updates
His performance jumped even more in the postseason. Against the Miami Heat, Hunter was the only player that found any success on the Hawks. He led the team with 21.2 points per game, shooting 56 percent from the field and 46 percent on 3-pointers. His teammates struggled mightily against Miami, but Hunter was able to kick his game up another notch.
In addition to the blossoming offense, Hunter is already an excellent defender. He was the primary defender on 24 of Jimmy Butler’s shot attempts in the playoff series. In the regular season, he defended an All-Star 761 times. According to ESPN’s Stats & Info, those All-Stars recorded a 45.7 effective field goal percentage against Hunter, which placed him inside the top 10.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: De’Andre Hunter & Atlanta Hawks Updates
That is the kind of player that the Hawks need around to help improve their defense, which was 26th last season and just as poor, if not worse, in previous seasons. Hunter, along with Murray, gives Atlanta two defensive stars on the perimeter to cover up for Young’s deficiencies.
With Hunter signed, every player in the Hawks’ projected starting five has a contract that runs for at least two seasons. Clint Capela and John Collins have deals, just like Young and Hunter, that run for at least three more while Murray’s stops at two.
