SEPTEMBER 9TH, 10:53pm: Hunter has signed with the Kings, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets. The pact is a one-year, minimum salary arrangement that includes a partial guarantee of $35K, Pincus notes. No official announcement has been made by the team.
AUGUST 13TH, 3:53pm: The Kings have reached a contract agreement with undrafted forward Vince Hunter, Shams Charania of RealGM reports (Twitter link). The length and terms of the pact are not yet known, but Charania notes that the deal includes a partial guarantee. Hunter was ranked as the No. 56 overall prospect in the 2015 NBA Draft according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, while ESPN’s Chad Ford slotted him at 42nd overall.
The addition of Hunter will bring Sacramento’s roster count to 16 players, 14 of whom possess fully guaranteed contracts, making Hunter a longshot to make the opening night roster. The Kings may have designs on the 6’8″ forward spending the 2015/16 season with their D-League affiliate in Reno, though that is merely my speculation. Hunter is an excellent athlete who is a solid rebounder, and he is an exciting finisher around the rim, but his lack of a reliable perimeter game will hurt his chances to earn a regular spot in the NBA.
The 21-year old made 33 appearances for UTEP during the 2014/15 campaign, averaging 14.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 28.5 minutes per contest, and he owned a slash line of .526/.400/.602. Hunter played for the Sixers’ squad in the Las Vegas Summer League, logging averages of 7.0 PPG and 5.5 RPG in four appearances.
I could definitely see a well-regarded prospect like him making the team, and why not? Yes, the Kings would love to make the playoffs this season. But player development should still be job No. 1 in Sacramento.