Cleveland Cavaliers forward De'Andre Hunter has broken his silence on recent, falsely-reported rumors regarding his desire to be traded from the team that acquired him last February. Speaking with Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor at shootaround in Philadelphia, the 28-year-old veteran refuted any claim suggesting a move.
“Why would I want to be traded? I'm happy here, for real,” Hunter told Cleveland.com. “I have no reason not to be happy here. My time here has been great. People tend to put a timestamp on how things should look, but I think with anything new, it takes time. You're not going to get the best product right away. I'm a patient guy. I've been in the league for a while, and I know how things can go, how seasons can go.
“You can start off bad, and end it good. You can start off good, and end it bad. I've seen it all. My biggest thing is remaining level-headed through all the media stuff, the bad games, the good games, everything. Just stay level-headed.”
A league source close to the team is just as perplexed as everybody with Hunter's first half of the season, but is positive that he'll get out of this rut.
“He is not this bad,” the source told ClutchPoints. “He has to be better than this. Just waiting for it to turn around.”
The first four months of his campaign have not been up to par, but the Cavs are sticking by Hunter. Teammates understand how talented he is and see the dedication behind the scenes, and it's only a matter of time before he comes out on the other side.
“I've been in the league for a while now, and I know the work is always going to prevail,” Hunter said. “If I just keep working, keep doing what I'm supposed to do, it'll eventually turn. I'm confident in that. I'm not worried.”
The Cavs are 5-5 in their last 10 games, and next take the court against the 76ers in Philadelphia on Wednesday night.
Though the source called it a “disaster” year with an unacceptable lack of focus, Cleveland is still 22-19 overall. All it takes is putting together a consistent two-to-three week stretch to be right there and scale the Eastern Conference standings.
“Not totally out of it,” the source said. “Just need everyone to play average.”
