The Atlanta Hawks had a tremendous season, fighting injury to key players all season as well as having a coaching change in the middle of the season. Through it all, Kevin Huerter has been the ultimate team player, giving the team what it needs.
The best thing that happened to Huerter was that Nate McMillan became the interim head coach just before the All-Star break. The reason for this is that Huerter is the same type of player as McMillan. He never concerns himself about his numbers for any individual game, instead of focusing on the number that the team needs that night.
Huerter can punish you from deep, he can drive in and shoot the mid-range. He can also get to the line or even become the secondary playmaker on the starting unit, or the primary playmaker on the second unit. He even led the team in steals in the regular season and then was second on the team in blocks for the playoffs. He is clearly more than just a shooter
The Atlanta Hawks saw true development in Kevin Huerter.
Looking at his raw numbers, it is hard to see what I mean by the fact that he has developed. In fact, he only had a career-high in one category, steals per game. It was the fact that Huerter was able to average so near to his career-best numbers with the extra talent that the team signed last offseason.
With his contract extension due to be signed this offseason, Huerter made a strong case to get paid reasonably well for his next contract. He will certainly not get a max deal, but this season saw him add value to his next contract.
Atlanta Hawks season highlights for Kevin Huerter
Huerter has three double-doubles for the season, two of these were points and rebounds and the other was points and assists. This would have been extremely satisfying for Huerter because it showed that he was able to influence the game in multiple ways.
What is even more impressive is that Huerter had five games where he collected four or more steals. He seemed to like the games against the Miami Heat because he had a game with five steals in a win and then a game with an incredible six steals where the Hawks lost.
Huerter was also incredible in the month of April. He scored in double figures in every single game, giving the team the help it needed when John Collins and Trae Young were out. This equated to 14 straight games. He also rebounded strongly, as this was a skill the team needed at the time.
However, the undoubted highlight of the season for Kevin Huerter was in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Young was having a very off night and the team needed someone to step up. Huerter had 27 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and a steal to pace the team until Young took over in the last and the Hawks made it to the next round.
Atlanta Hawks contract and season grades for Kevin Huerter
Contract Grade
More from Soaring Down South
- Start, Bench, Cut: Sorting through the Hawks’ power forward options
- Hawks’ Bogdan Bogdanovic reacts to earning FIBA World Cup championship bid
- When does training camp start for the Atlanta Hawks?
- Grade the trade: Hawks deal Trae Young to Clippers in shocking proposal
- Dejounte Murray rips NBA 2K after Atlanta Hawks ratings reveal
Huerter has just finished the third year of his rookie deal. He is eligible for his rookie extension this offseason and the Hawks would be wise to offer him what they sensibly can. Huerter has been incredibly good for the team in the glue-guy role.
He only earned $2.7 million this season and will only earn $4.2 million next season. He is still learning and growing but he has shown that the moment is not too big for him. Yes, he struggled in the last game of the Eastern Conference Finals but don’t forget he is the reason the team made it that far thanks to his efforts against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Contract grade: A+
Season Grade
At the start of the season, Huerter was the only bench player who was hitting the 3-ball with any regularity. Then he started to run the second unit and he averaged good assist numbers. He then moved into the starting unit due to the Hawks injury crisis.
Huerter would then move in and out of the starting lineup as players got hurt and came back. He did not have a set role for the season but he never complained, he just went out and did his job to the best of his ability.
Season grade: A-