Report: De'Andre Hunter Traded to Cavs; Hawks Get Caris LeVert, Niang and Draft Picks

The Atlanta Hawks have reportedly traded wing De'Andre Hunter to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, three second-round draft picks and two pick swaps.

Shams Charania of ESPN reported the news ahead of Thursday's trade deadline.

Hunter has enjoyed a strong season, averaging 19 points on 46.1 percent shooting and 3.9 rebounds per game. Most notably, he's shot 39.3 percent from three-point range.

The 27-year-old Hunter signed a four-year, $95 million contract extension with the Hawks in Oct. 2022. His current deal runs through 2026-27.

Hunter was the fourth overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft after leading Virginia to an NCAA championship. The 6'8" forward has enjoyed a solid career, averaging 14.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.

Unfortunately, injuries have cost him large chunks of time since his second NBA season (2020-21). During that year, a right knee ailment led to getting surgery on a torn meniscus. In Nov. 2021, Hunter suffered a right wrist injury that cost him 25 games. Right knee inflammation sidelined Hunter for over a month during the 2023-24 campaign.

Right knee inflammation has unfortunately cost him time again this year, but that hasn't stopped him from authoring his most productive season yet.

Surprisingly, Hunter is on the move, though, ending his six years in Atlanta.

Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com connected the Cavs and Hunter on Wednesday.

And now it's come to fruition as Hunter becomes a superstar sixth man for a Cavs team with a healthy first-place edge in the Eastern Conference and sights set on the franchise's second NBA championship.

Ultimately, Cleveland looks as if it has two major obstacles in the way of a title via the defending champion Boston Celtics and the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder. Both teams are quite deep, so Cleveland needs to match or exceed that. Enter Hunter, who should help strengthen the Cavs' stout second unit en route to a potential championship run.