The Atlanta Hawks (38-37) do not expect to be without De’Andre Hunter for too long. So said general manager Travis Schlenk in his appearance on 92.9 The Game via Mike Conti on Tuesday. This comes after the third-year forward sat out Monday’s win over the Indiana Pacers with soreness in the same knee that has twice undergone meniscus surgery.
Beating Indiana was probably tougher than it needed to be, but the Hawks were unexpectedly short-handed with Hunter as a last-minute scratch.
It still puts them over .500 with the no-name Oklahoma City Thunder next up.
While they do expect to have Hunter back soon, there is a chance he sits out Wednesday’s tilt. The bigger tragedy, though, is that missing Monday already interrupted a fairly significant streak for the third-year former University of Virginia Cavalier.
The Atlanta Hawks just got their most extended look at De’Andre Hunter yet
Injuries have, unfortunately, played a leading role in Hunter’s short tenure. Averaging 13.1 points on 43.6 percent shooting overall and 35.7 percent from downtown for his career, he’s also only appeared in 132 out of a possible 214 games. It has mostly been over the past two seasons with the meniscus robbing him of large chunks of the last two campaigns.
He missed all but 23 games last year and missed 26 games this season following wrist surgery.
Hunter is putting up 13.4 points per game on 55.2 percent true shooting with 3.2 boards and 1.3 assists. He had appeared in 35 consecutive games before sitting out against the Pacers.
That is the longest streak of appearances in his two-plus seasons in the NBA.
His previous mark for most consecutive appearances was 27 games set during his rookie season. Interestingly, he played in 63-of-67 outings that year but missed games here and there keeping him from setting a higher benchmark sooner.
Hunter missed the final 13 playoff games last season.
He is posting a negative net rating for the first time in his career this season and they are 15-14 without him in the lineup. However, we have seen how their struggles to defend the perimeter intensify without him. He is also shooting a career-best 37.8 percent from beyond the arc, the fourth-highest mark on the team.
The Hawks injury report also included both Danilo Gallinari (elbow) and Jalen Johnson (concussion evaluation) listed as questionable. John Collins and Skylar Mays remain out for Wednesday’s tilt.
Hopefully, Hunter will be good to go by game-time. But, with the Hawks having a 4.5-game lead for the final Play-In spot, and OKC having lost eight of its last 10 games (9-of-10 at home), the Hawks could opt to steal some extra rest for their banged-up players.