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After acquiring All-Star guard Dejounte Murray from the Spurs on Wednesday, the Hawks have made another move in an effort to strengthen their roster around Trae Young.
Former first-round pick Kevin Huerter is heading to the Kings in exchange for Justin Holiday, Mo Harkless and a future first-round pick, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Friday. Huerter, 23, was drafted by Atlanta with the No. 19 pick in the 2018 NBA draft after two years at Maryland.
In addition to opening a starting spot in the wake of Murray’s arrival, Atlanta also cleared some cap space to sign Murray long term while adding more defense on the wing. On a more sentimental note, the move will reunite Holiday, 33, with his brother Aaron nearly two years after they teamed in Indiana; the 20-year-old joined Atlanta on a one-year deal earlier in the day.
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Once viewed as a long-term option next to Young in Atlanta’s backcourt, Huerter now moves on to Sacramento after a subpar four seasons in Atlanta. His prowess as a sharpshooter afforded him valuable minutes in the rotation, but his inconsistency on both ends of the floor proved to be negative next to the offensive-minded star point guard.
Still, the trade does come as a bit of a surprise as Huerter could’ve provided scoring depth off the bench after turning in one of the most efficient seasons of his brief NBA tenure. However, after signing a four-year, $65 million contract extension last fall, the 23-year-old’s production didn’t justify keeping him around in the eyes of team management with his new deal set to kick in.
During the 2021–22 regular season, Huerter averaged 12.1 points on a career-best 45.4% from the field and 38.9% from three in 74 games played (60 starts). His numbers dipped to 9.2 ppg on 36.2 FG% and 29% 3P in the Hawks’ first-round loss to the Heat in five games.
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