Atlanta Hawks Season Grades: Kevin Huerter

Grading Kevin Huerter's fourth season in Atlanta.

Coming from Golden State, general manager Travis Schlenk walked into the perfect rebuild opportunity in Atlanta in 2019. The team had drafted Trae Young and Kevin Huerter in the 2018 NBA Draft, which they dreamed would one day be their version of the Steph Curry-Klay Thompson backcourt.

While those goals are lofty, Young has lived up to the hype. Unfortunately, Huerter resembles your typical 19th overall pick. 'Red Velvet' has just wrapped up his fourth season, and now it's time to grade his performance.

End of the Year Grades

Offense - A

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After being a key piece of a magical postseason run, Kevin Huerter was rewarded with a four-year, $65 million contract extension at the 11th hour back in October. At Media Day, Huerter said he wanted to shoot 40% from three in the 2021-22 season.

The magic was gone at the beginning of the season as Huerter got off to a dreadful start. He was coming off the bench and was losing touches to Cam Reddish. Through six games, Huerter averaged 4.83 points on 28.5% from the field and 15% from behind the arc. 

His struggles came to a head in the seventh game of the season when he was scratched from the lineup during warmups. Hawks head coach Nate McMillan said it was due to fatigue. Props to McMillan because the move worked. Huerter snapped out of the slump and returned to form.

While Huerter did not make a huge leap in his fourth season, he improved under less-than-ideal circumstances. 'Red Velvet' averaged 12.1 points per game and shot a career-high 38.9% from three and 57% true shooting percentage. Huerter will never be Klay Thompson, but he's a lethal catch-and-shoot player who is on an extremely team-friendly contract.

Defense - C

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Besides the explosive Game Seven performance in Philadelphia, one of the most exciting developments last summer was seeing Kevin Huerter play defense at such a high level.

Perhaps that stifling playoff defense was an aberration because Huerter did not replicate it this season. According to almost every advanced stat, including FiveThirtyEight's RAPTOR, Hueter regressed on defense. 

Nate McMillan switching up the starting lineup helped both Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic on offense, but it exacerbated the Hawks' defensive problems. Trae Young and Huerter struggled to make stops. The two had a defensive rating of 117.1 when on the court together, compared to the team's 113.7 average defensive rating. Something's got to give because that is an unsustainable amount of points for your starting backcourt to allow. 

Development - B

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Kevin Huerter attempted more two-point and three-point shots this season than at any other point in his career. Impressively, he shot a career-high 45.4% from the field and 38.9% from deep. However, as I covered in the previous section, his defense took a step back. 

Huerter will turn 24 years old next August, and major leaps are uncommon for players at that point in their career. The good news is Huerter's floor is high, and the Hawks know what they will get from him on a nightly basis for the next few years (should he remain on the team).

Overall Grade - B-

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Bogdan Bogdanovic remains the all-around better player than Kevin Huerter. However, the line between the two is becoming increasingly blurred.

Earlier this week, both general manager Travis Schlenk and team owner Tony Ressler hinted at roster changes coming this offseason. No one except for Trae Young is guaranteed to be back next season. Huerter is a solid starting player on a team-friendly contract, and there will be plenty of teams inquiring about his availability this summer. 

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