Atlanta Hawks: 5 players for De’Andre Hunter to study during the hiatus

De’Andre Hunter is one of the Atlanta Hawks most exciting young stars. Here are five players that he should study to try and maximize his career.

Before the 2019 NBA Draft, De’Andre Hunter was compared to some elite three and D small forwards such as OG Anunoby and Luol Deng. These seem like fair comparisons for Hunter, however, considering he was the fourth overall pick, he certainly has the potential to be even better.

At 6’7 De’Andre Hunter has the ability to be a lockdown defender with the ability to guard nearly all five positions on the floor. Not only is he elite defensively, but his three-point shooting is something to behold for a rookie forward. The pairing of these two potentially elite skill sets could make for a really great player.

If Hunter wants to take the next step in becoming a potential All-Star or All-NBA player in the league, he’ll need to improve his ability to score in different ways. Right now, Hunter is simply a good shooter, however, he’ll need to work on his game attacking the basket and in-between.

One way Hunter could look to improve his skill set is by watching and studying other NBA players that have a similar style of play. There are a lot of forwards in the NBA that have attributes similar to De’Andre Hunter, however, it would serve him well to study the best of the best.

For Atlanta Hawks fans, De’Andre Hunter appears to be a piece the team can build around for years to come. However, it will be up to him to put in the work necessary for him to become the best version of himself.

Let’s take a look at five guys that make sense for De’Andre Hunter to study during this NBA hiatus.

5. Paul Millsap

Paul Millsap is one of the greatest Atlanta Hawks of all-time. Ironically, his skillset is quite similar to De’Andre Hunter. In Millsap’s four seasons with the Hawks, he managed to make the All-Star team each and every season. This is definitely someone Hunter should be looking to.

At this point in Millsap’s career, he is certainly on the decline, however, his prime is something Hunter should be watching.

Paul Millsap was a steady force for the Hawks on both ends of the floor. He anchored the defense, often picking up the other teams best player, and he was one of the focal points of the teams offense. These are both things Hunter should be striving to do.

Paul Millsap in his four seasons with the Hawks averaged 17.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.2 blocks per game on .463/.335/.753 shooting splits. As you can see by his raw numbers, Millsap did everything for the Hawks.

De’Andre Hunter is already a better shooter than Millsap at 35.5 percent and he is more athletic than Millsap ever was. Hunter has all the tools to fill the Paul Millsap role for the Hawks and it’s very likely he could do more.

If Hunter can take a few of the veteran savvy tricks that Paul Millsap uses to make the most of every possession, that could go a long way for De’Andre Hunter.

4. Robert Covington

De’Andre Hunter is already as good as Robert Covington on the offensive end of the floor but he could certainly learn a lot from RoCo on the defensive side of the ball. Covington is one of the best and most versatile defenders in the NBA, something Hunter should be striving for.

As mentioned, Robert Covington is simply one of the best defenders in the NBA. He has already made one All-Defensive team in his seven-year career and he is likely to make many more. This season for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Houston Rockets, Covington averaged an impressive 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

Similar to Hunter, Covington is 6’7 and has the ability to guard basically all five positions. However, Hunter is still young and is far from a perfect defender. He could learn a lot from watching a guy like Covington.

This season, while Hunter’s defense was impressive, he only averaged 0.7 steals and 0.3 blocks per game. If he wants to take his defense to the next level, he should be watching a guy like Covington to see how he gets in passing lanes and disrupts shot attempts so often.

De’Andre Hunter could benefit greatly from studying Robert Covington on the defensive end of the floor, however, he would get much out of watching him on offense.

3. OG Anunoby

OG Anunoby is similar to Robert Covington in that he is one of the better all-around defenders in the NBA. This season for the Toronto Raptors, Anunoby averaged 1.4 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. De’Andre Hunter could easily learn a lot of Anunoby.

OG Anunoby is still a growing player in his own right, but his growth, especially on the defensive end, is something Hunter should attempt to mirror. Anunoby often guards the opposing teams best player every single night and was one of the best at making life difficult for those guys.

While Hunter has certainly got off to a good start defensively, he could still learn a lot from a still-evolving defender in OG Anunoby. The guys who make All-Star teams as defense-first players are few and far between and I’m not saying De’Andre Hunter or OG Anunoby will be one of them, but they both have a chance.

However, as I mentioned, Anunoby is similar to Covington in the sense that Hunter won’t be able to learn much from him offensively. Both Anunoby and Hunter struggle to get to the basket and that’s something they should be looking to the next two guys on this list to learn.

2. Pascal Siakam

Pascal Siakam’s improvement in the first four seasons of his career is something to behold. Siakam was named to his first All-Star game this season and is likely to be named to many more due to his elite ability on both ends of the floor.

The improvement from year to year is really something De’Andre Hunter should look to mirror. It’s all about putting in the work and adding to your game each and every season. Hunter’s improvement will almost certainly not be as profound as Siakam’s, however, the linearity of his improvement is what he should be aiming for.

Pascal Siakam is capable of scoring over 25 points on any given night whilst defending the other teams best player. This is certainly a high-end goal that Hunter should have for himself. That type of player will be a perfect complement to Trae Young and has proven to be essential in any teams championship run.

If Hunter is able to get even remotely close to Siakam’s level of improvement, that would be a success. The most important thing Hunter could take from Siakam’s game is his relentless ability to attack the basket. That will take Hunters offensive game to the next level.

1. Kawhi Leonard

Easily the most obvious guy Kawhi Leonard should be studying is Kawhi Leonard. Leonard has been a top-five player in the NBA for a while now and is one of the best three and D wings in the entire league.

De’Andre Hunter should be studying every single piece of Kawhi Leonard’s game. From his elite defense to his pure scoring ability, Kawhi Leonard is a perfect player for Hunter to model his game after.

Kawhi Leonard has proven to have the ability to lead a team to a championship and if Hunter is able to get that good, the Hawks will be terrifying. These are obviously incredibly high expectations for De’Andre Hunter, but he might as well shoot for the moon and at the very least he’ll land among the (All) stars.

Kawhi Leonard is a four-time All-Star and this season with the Clippers he continued to be one of the best teams in the league. He averaged a career-high 26.9 points per game, ninth in the NBA, and led the Clippers to second in the Western Conference.

This is something Hunter should be striving for if he wants to be the perfect complement to Trae Young and John Collins. If Hunter can average over 25 points per game while locking down on the other teams best perimeter player, the Hawks will have struck gold with Hunter.

Let’s hope De’Andre Hunter is watching some Kawhi Leonard film so he can hopefully maximize all of the potential he appears to have.