The Cleveland Cavaliers just made a massive trade that will make the Boston Celtics’ journey back to the NBA Finals much, much harder. According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the Cavs have landed De’Andre Hunter in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks, sending out Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, two pick swaps, and three second-round picks.
Boston just squared off against the Cavs in Cleveland a few days ago, and the Celtics picked up a win. They took a 2-1 lead in the season series, further proving how intense a seven-game series between the two sides could be in the postseason. Hunter’s addition to Cleveland’s lineup only adds more fuel to that fire.
And not the type of fuel the Celtics wanted to see.
De'Andre Hunter trade makes Cavs even bigger threat to Celtics
When healthy, Hunter has been one of the best bench players in the NBA this season. At one point, he was a serious threat to Payton Pritchard’s Sixth Man of the Year bid, but he likely won’t play enough games for voters to swing the decision in his favor.
He found a real groove on the offensive end this year. In 37 appearances, Hunter has averaged 19.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.5 assists while shooting 46.1% from the field and 39.3% from deep on a career-high 6.7 three-point attempts per game.
The Atlanta Hawks are trading forward De'Andre Hunter to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, three second-round picks and two swaps, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/5fpE4LJzpK
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 6, 2025
Having his shooting on the wing will make the Cavs’ lineup even more dangerous, especially since they managed to keep Max Strus and Isaac Okoro in the deal.
But the true value of the Hunter trade has nothing to do with his offensive presence. It’s his defense that could end up making a huge difference in a series against Boston, and that’s what Celtics fans should be most concerned about.
At 6-foot-8, Hunter has been a rock-solid perimeter defender for his entire career. The Cavs have a great defensive front in Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, but they’re a bit shaky on the perimeter. For as offensively dominant as Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland are, they give the Celtics points to attack on the other end of the floor.
Inserting Hunter into the lineup gives the Cavs a body to throw at Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. A body they didn’t have before. Prior to his addition, their best defensive piece was Okoro, but he’s not nearly a good enough offensive piece to have on the floor for 30 minutes per game. Hunter is.
Not only are the Cavs already one of the best teams in the NBA, making them a threat to beat the Celtics, but they now also have a legitimate wing defender to play against Tatum and Brown.