The Atlanta Hawks traded Kevin Huerter to the Kings in 2022 for a massive haul, and the Detroit Pistons are finally realizing he can’t help his team in the playoffs. The 6’6 wing played just three minutes in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series against the Magic. The top-seeded Pistons acquired Huerter at the deadline. They knew they had ball-handling and shooting problems. Detroit clearly thought he was the answer, but everyone in Atlanta could have told them otherwise.
The Hawks drafted Huerter with the 19th overall pick in 2018. He helped them through a couple of down years and even pushed his way into the starting five during Atlanta’s conference finals run in 2021. The following year, his minutes went down, and Huerter struggled mightily in the playoffs. He shot just 36.2 percent from the field and 29 percent on his 3-point tries as the Heat bounced the Hawks in the opening round. Atlanta traded Huerter after that series to tip everyone off that he wasn’t viewed as helping them win when it mattered most.
The 6’6 wing made the playoffs in 2023 with the Kings and shot a disastrous 34.7 percent from the field and 20.5 percent on his threes in their first-round loss. Everyone knew Huerter would fall apart in the playoffs, except the Pistons.
Pistons are finally realizing Kevin Huerter’s playoff struggles
Detroit played Huerter 18.5 minutes in Game 1, where he had three points on one of three shooting from the field. He was limited to 6.3 minutes in the Game 2 win. Head coach JB Bickerstaff played him 15 minutes in Game 3, but Huerter couldn’t make a shot in the loss. With the series on the line, Huerter got just three minutes and failed to score as Detroit went down 3-1. A massive upset is brewing, and the Pistons must glue Huerter to the bench in Game 5.
The Hawks gave Huerter a lot more minutes to find out he wasn’t helping them win. The Hawks were outscored by 62 points in the wing’s 153 minutes in that 2022 playoff series. It was clear he was part of the problem, so Atlanta jumped at getting a first-round draft pick for him.
The trade has been a masterstroke. It played a role in landing the Pelicans' pick in this year’s draft, which is an even better move.
Hawks fans saw his playoff struggles up close in 2022. They got worse in 2023. Three years later, Huerter can barely get on the floor as the Pistons search for shooting, playmaking, and scoring answers. Detroit has scored 101 points or fewer in three of the four games. If Huerter could offer any offense, he would be on the floor.
The Detroit Pistons are realizing what the Atlanta Hawks have known for years. It was shocking that Huerter was the prime deadline acquisition for Detroit. Everyone in Atlanta knew that wouldn’t make a difference, and it has unsurprisingly blown up in the Pistons' face. I guess they should have just asked around. The answer was clear, and Detroit clearly missed it.
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