At last season's trade deadline, the Sacramento Kings brought in De'Andre Hunter to reinforce their injury-plagued roster. But before he could establish himself, Hunter was also knocked out for the season. Now, he needs to find his spot before developing rookies takes priority over his minutes.
When the 2025-2026 season started, Hunter was a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He had recently been traded by the Hawks after being in Atlanta since 2019. Hunter wasn't having a great run, which was probably why the Cavs were willing to move on from him after less than a season.
To be fair to Hunter, the same thing happened to the two players the Cavs got from the Kings. They've already traded Dennis Schroder to the Hornets, while Keon Ellis is now on the Nets. Both of them lasted half a season in Cleveland. That's enough to make one wonder about Hunter, too.
Thanks to a freak eye injury, Hunter only played one and a half games with the Kings before his season ended. He's currently listed as the starting small forward and the third-string power forward on ESPN's projected depth chart. That may not last long once the season gets rolling.
Hunter could lose minutes very quickly to rookies and sophomores
Behind Hunter at small forward are Nique Clifford, Alex Karaban, and Daeqwon Plowden. You know that getting minutes to further the development of all three of these players has to be a priority for the Kings. Even if Hunter plays well, it's only a matter of time before these three move up the rotation.
Part of the problem is that no one, including the coaching staff and front office, has any idea what Hunter looks like as part of the team. He barely played for Sacramento before he got injured. Making the situation even worse is the fact that most of the Kings' starting lineup was also out injured.
In essence, Hunter is starting from scratch on the Kings this season. Both Clifford and Plowden played more for Sacramento last season than Hunter did. And Karaban is a rookie the Kings worked hard to get in the 2026 Draft. Hunter will have to fight just as hard for his spot as they do.
The reality is that Hunter's contract is up at the end of this season, meaning the Kings have to make a decision this season. Keeping in mind that he's making slightly less than $25 million this season, that money could go a long way to helping the Kings shore up their developing roster.
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