Sacramento Kings head coach Doug Christie and general manager Scott Perry have been clear about the defensive identity they want their team to take on. Having been forced to utilize guard-heavy lineups this season hasn’t played into that, an aspect that new addition De’Andre Hunter should help with.
Hunter (28) is a notably different archetype than Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder, lacking perimeter containment but providing more size to their lineups.
While his defensive impact may be overstated by anyone who hasn’t watched his tenure with the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers, his 6’8″ frame and 7’2″ wingspan should better suit their preferences.
Placing him alongside Keegan Murray could provide a look that they’ve rarely been able to accomplish over the last decade-plus, but don’t expect Hunter to be a savior.
De’Andre Hunter’s NBA Journey
Hunter entered the NBA projected as a high-level three-and-D prospect after winning the 2018-19 ACC Defensive Player of the Year award with the eventual National Champion Virginia Cavaliers. Most viewed him as a top-five prospect in the 2019 NBA Draft, where the New York Knicks sat with the third overall pick, where the current Kings general manager was working at the time.
Zion Williamson went first, followed by Ja Morant, then the Knicks selected RJ Barrett — no surprises. But with Hunter going fourth to Atlanta, it’s safe to assume Perry grew familiar with him during that process.
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
At 6’8 with a 7’2 wingspan, and coming off an ACC DPOY in college, many hoped that he could end up as one of the better on-ball defenders at the NBA level. But it never quite panned out to that extent.
Fitting with many Virginia prospects, he’s someone I’d describe as a disciplined defender but not a playmaker on that end — almost a polar opposite of Keon Ellis, with a significantly different stature.
In his first five years with the Hawks, he may have made a greater impact on the offensive end of the floor while averaging 14.3 points on 44.7 percent from the field and 36.3 percent from three on 4.5 attempts per game. He started in 237 of the 263 regular-season games he was available for and played upwards of 30 minutes a night — most of those bench performances came towards the end of his tenure with the Hawks.
Hunter was clearly a rotational player who made an immediate impact after being drafted at 22. Yet, one year after Atlanta (over?)paid him with a four-year, $90-million rookie scale extension, they shipped him off to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, three second-round picks, and two first-round swaps that are unlikely to convey.
Splitting time last season between Atlanta and Cleveland, Hunter ended fourth in Sixth Man of the Year voting with a clear gap between him and the top-three candidates (Payton Pritchard, Malik Beasley, and his new teammate Ty Jerome).
After starting in his first 23 games with the Cavaliers this season, they elected to replace him with second-year player Jaylon Tyson, who is better equipped to defend quicker, shiftier perimeter talents.
Of course, saving approximately $50 million in salary and luxury tax penalties combined played into Cleveland’s decision to move on from him, but swapping him for another perimeter defender (and disruptor) in Ellis surely did as well.
(Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Defensive Pros and Cons, Fit Alongside Keegan Murray
As mentioned, Hunter isn’t an ideal defender to assign to the likes of Steph Curry, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, or Jamal Murray, as Keegan Murray has proven capable of. Their primary differences lie in footspeed, quickness in flipping their hips, and physicality.
His disciplined on-ball defense shows through in his low 1.1 percent steal rate and 0.3 percent block rate — although a 3.8 percent foul rate isn’t ideal. Instead, he’s someone who will often stay on the ground when contesting jump shots and not go for the risky all-or-nothing steals. And there’s value in that type of player, especially on a Sacramento team that has desperately lacked defenders in general, particularly with notable size and length.
Per NBA Stats, the matchups Hunter spent the most time guarding this season were Kevin Durant, Jaylen Brown, Brandon Ingram, Miles Bridges, and Naz Reid.
Take a look at some of his defensive tape against those players.
Diving more into some De’Andre Hunter film. He’s someone I’d describe as a fairly disciplined on-ball defender, but not a playmaker on that end.
His length helps him contest larger matchups, especially in isolation, but can struggle with quicker first steps (more to come 🧵) pic.twitter.com/O03Edi13cX
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) February 2, 2026
Yes, watching someone attempt to defend Kevin Durant is probably unfair, but I’d emphasize the process over the results. For the most part, he is able to get decent contests on Durant’s jumpers using his size — not that any contest ever affects one of the greatest scorers in league history — but he can have trouble containing first steps.
More concern arises when examining his off-ball defensive tendencies, a notable factor in him owning Cleveland’s second-lowest individual defensive rating this season (115.1). The only player on their roster with a worse on-court defensive rating is 6’1 Darius Garland.
Being guilty of ball-watching too often, struggling to navigate screens (on and off the ball), and not providing much rim protection keep him from being a true defensive playmaker.
I’m definitely not claiming Hunter is an elite stopper on-ball, but I think the off-ball stuff is where concern really lies.
He can be guilty of ball-watching and losing track of his own man and is not particularly good at navigating screens.
Far from a rim protector, too. https://t.co/sNj5vBX2El pic.twitter.com/B7VQfEAoJJ
— Brenden Nunes (@BrendenNunesNBA) February 2, 2026
Even with his shortcomings, it’s easy to see how he would help improve Sacramento’s defense as a whole. Hunter is not a savior who is going to drastically change their outcomes on that end of the floor, but replacing two guards (Schroder, Ellis) with a 6’8 “player who has a 7’2” wingspan is an upgrade in itself.
For example, if the Kings were to face a healthy Golden State Warriors squad, Murray has shown the ability to chase Stephen Curry through screens and do his best to keep the ball in front of him. That’s never going to be perfect and may still be asking Murray to do too much, but it has been and will likely continue to be their best option.
After Curry, the question would have been, well, then who is slowing down Jimmy Butler? Sure, Precious Achiuwa has been a solid temporary option there, but he comes with notable offensive shortcomings. To reiterate, Hunter isn’t going to be locking down Butler and, honestly, will probably have some struggles in doing so, but his combination of size and length should provide a better option than previously available.
Even imagining full defensive-focused lineups that feature Murray, Hunter, Achiuwa, and rookie big man Dylan Cardwell could provide more switchability for head coach Doug Christie to work with. Their offensive concerns would be an entirely separate conversation, though.
The Bigger Picture
Hunter’s defensive reputation among general NBA fans and viewers is probably overrated compared to how his previous stops view him. In Cleveland, where he lost his starting spot partially due to his defensive struggles, having a backline of Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen did wonders.
The Kings don’t have that. Domantas Sabonis is far from a rim protector, and none of their current forwards significantly bolsters their paint defense either. So, their 28th-ranked defense (119.6 defensive rating) shouldn’t be expected to take a jump after inserting Hunter but he could be a piece to a larger puzzle that is still being put together.
Reasonable questions exist about their timeline given Hunter’s age (28), but more moves could be on the horizon as most of their roster is known to be available ahead of the looming February 5th trade deadline.
Personally, I’d be in favor of fully resetting the roster and essentially starting from scratch, while keeping Murray, Nique Clifford, Maxime Raynaud, and Dylan Cardwell.
But the Kings don’t seem to have an appetite to do so. With that in mind, Hunter helps fill a void on their flawed, imbalanced roster.
With only one year remaining after this season at $24.9 million, there’s always the option of re-routing Hunter this offseason or leading into next year’s trade deadline. Perry could also elect to let him walk in favor of cap space in 2027.
In the meantime, they’ll have a chance to evaluate how he fits with their roster and decide the ideal course of action moving forward.
Hunter isn’t going to drastically change their fortunes, and he may not be the defender people are expecting him to be, but his size should help a Kings team that has often been forced to utilize three and even four guard lineups throughout their disappointing 2025-26 NBA season.
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Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Wednesday, February 4th – vs. Memphis Grizzlies – 7:00 PM PT
Friday, February 6th – vs. Los Angeles Clippers – 7:00 PM PT
Saturday, February 7th – vs. Cleveland Cavaliers – 7:00 PM PT
Monday, February 9th – @ New Orleans Pelicans – 5:00 PM PT
Wednesday, February 11th – @ Utah Jazz – 6:00 PM PT
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