The Atlanta Hawks are exchanging De’andre Hunter to the Cleveland Cavaliers by Caris Levert, Georges Niang, three selections of second round and two exchanges, was announced on Thursday.
Hunter, 27, is having a professional year in his sixth season in the NBA, averaging maximums at points (19), attempts of 3 points (6.7) and percentage of 3 points (39.3%). He has had a more important role in Atlanta’s offensive and responded well to the additional score responsibility, fulfilling part of the promise he had as a selection among the top five in the 2019 Draft.
Hunter joins a team of the Cavaliers that is at the top of the Eastern Conference and was looking to add more size in the wing. Levert, 30, was having a strong season in Cleveland, with an average of 10.2 points and firing 40.5% from 3 outside the bank, but at 6 feet and 6 inches it was renouncing a size like a small striker.
Hunter has been one of the best scorers from the bank in the NBA this season. Its 18 20 -point games from the bank are the most in the NBA, and leads the league with 18.9 points from the bank.
Hunter is in the second season of an extension of four years and $ 90 million that he signed with the Hawks in 2023. He is not ready to hit free agency without restrictions until the summer of 2027. Meanwhile, Levert is in the last year of your agreement.
With Hunter, the cavs add another 3 -point capture and shot to space the floor with Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. The cavs already shoot 40.1% in triples of capture and shot, the best mark in the NBA spectrum per second, and the 2.1 of Catch-And-Shoot 3 of Hunter occupies the 13th place in the NBA. In two losses against the Boston Celtics, the CAVs fought to capitalize on those opportunities, going 4 of 12 and 4 of 19 in the defeats on November 19 and February 4, respectively, their slightest part in a game this season.
Atlanta has recently had problems after star striker Jalen Johnson came out with an injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season. The Hawks have fallen nine of their last 10 games and have begun to begin to rebuild their list.
Levert spent four seasons with the cavs after being acquired in an exchange of the Brooklyn Nets and forced a role like the sixth Cleveland man, averaging 12.5 points, 4.3 assists in 43% of shooting in 199 games, most of which were A reserve. Niang was in his second season with the CAVs and had appeared in the 51 games for Cleveland this season.
Atlanta made another pair of movements before the deadline on Thursday, sending Bogdan Bogdanovic and three second round selections to the Los Angeles Clippers for the Guardiaias Telence Mann and Hyland Bones, sources told Charania. They are also sending the veteran Cody Zeller center and the selection of the 2028 seconds from Houston to the Rockets, the sources said.
Meanwhile, the clippers also sent Kevin Porter Jr. to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Marjon Beauchamp, the sources said.
Mann signed an extension of three years and $ 47 million with the clippers in September. He was in his sixth season with the Clippers, where it was a second round of the team in the 2019 draft outside Florida.
Mann, 28, began the first 11 games of the season for the. But he has left the bank since then. Mann started in a 71 -games record last season. His best year was during the 2021-22 campaign, when he averaged the best 10.8 points of the race, 5.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
Zeller, 32, has two years left in his deal after this season.
