AUG. 18: The Rockets officially announced that Hunter has been waived.
AUG. 17: The Rockets have waived guard R.J. Hunter, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets.
That opens up a two-way contract slot for Houston, since Hunter was signed in January under one of those agreements. The 6’5” Hunter appeared in five games with the Rockets, including a start, averaging 3.8 PPG in 9.0 MPG.
Hunter played for Houston’s summer league team in July, the fourth consecutive offseason that he appeared in summer league games. He averaged 11.2 PPG in five Las Vegas appearances.
Hunter was chosen 28th overall by the Celtics in the 2015 draft. He played 36 games during his rookie season for Boston, then was waived during training camp the following season. He was claimed by the Bulls and saw action in three games before they waived him in December 2016.
Another miss by celtics.
?
Wasn’t this kid supposed to be a sharp shooter coming out of G State? Oops.
Had a great ncaa tourney run and did what he was supposed to do….turn it into a 1st round selection while the fire was still hot. Better to flame out in the nba than to stay in college one year too long and never even get a brush fire. He pretty much maximized his exposure, made some money, and now should be able to make solid money overseas as a former 1st round pick and NBA player. Good for him and that 2-week ncaa tourney span!
I think he was more of a volume scorer with range but his potential really depended on what else he could bring (defense, playmaking, etc). It hasn’t really helped that he hasn’t gotten that much of an opportunity (whether that’s because he hasn’t shown well in practice/games or he only gets garbage time minutes). It also didn’t help that he went to a team (Celtics) with a ton of incoming draft picks in his draft year and the following years. He would’ve really needed to stand out to keep his spot and he might’ve not been afforded that opportunity.
His quickness is lacking. Only 450 spots in the NBA. He does work hard, I think he will hook on again. His stroke is pure so there is hope.