The NBA trade winds are blowing with the deadline just about one week away. With the Milwaukee Bucks expected to be an active team on the market, they reportedly engaged in trade talks with the Cleveland Cavaliers in recent days. In an effort to bolster the roster to provide help for Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks recently offered Kyle Kuzma in a trade for Cavs forward De’Andre Hunter, as per ClutchPoints’ NBA insider Brett Siegel.
However, even as the Cavs continue to look to move under the second apron by the deadline, they are not particularly interested in a Kyle Kuzma trade with the Bucks, nor are they quick to give up on De’Andre Hunter either.
The Cavs haven’t exactly been a model of consistency this season, especially compared to the regular season success they had last year. But they are currently on a four-game win streak and are 28-20, good enough for the No. 5 seed right now in the Eastern Conference standings. They’re also only one game back of both the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors who are in the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, respectively.
And Hunter has been a very productive player for the Cavs this season. The No. 4 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, this is his first full season with the team after being acquired from the Atlanta Hawks last trade deadline. As reported by Siegel, if the Cavs were to potentially trade Hunter, they would not want less than what they gave up to acquire him. It was a package for Caris LeVert, Georges Niang and multiple second round picks and a couple of pick swaps.
Hunter has appeared in 41 games this season, including 23 starts, at a little over 26 minutes per game. He’s been averaging 13.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists with splits of 42 percent shooting from the field, 30.6 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 87.9 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
