Zach LaVine tried to needle De’Andre Hunter before the Sacramento Kings’ media session, and Hunter made sure the joke landed somewhere else.
Before Hunter spoke with Leaky Black, LaVine wandered over and brought up their old matchups from Hunter’s Atlanta Hawks days.
“Ask his a** about how he used to guard me in Atlanta,” LaVine said, via Sean Cunningham of ABC10.
Hunter didn’t bite. He answered with a clean little counterpunch, tossing the joke back at LaVine and giving a nod to one of LaVine’s former Chicago Bulls teammates in the process.
“I didn’t, I used to guard a better player in DeMar. That’s usually who I guarded, the best player. Not Zach,” Hunter said.
The reference was to DeMar DeRozan, who played alongside LaVine in Chicago from 2021 to 2024. During that span, the Bulls and Hawks saw plenty of each other, and Hunter said DeRozan was usually the assignment he drew.
The back-and-forth came during a rough stretch for Sacramento, which fell to 1-9 after a 114-108 loss to the Miami Heat on Sunday. The Kings were without Domantas Sabonis, who sat out with left knee soreness.
LaVine and Hunter both put up numbers in the defeat. LaVine finished with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting, while Hunter scored 14. Darius Acuff Jr. led the way with 32 points and 10 assists, but Giannis Antetokounmpo and Klay Thompson combined for 52 points to help Miami pull away.
Hunter is in his first full season with the Kings after coming over from the Cleveland Cavaliers in a three-team deal before last season’s trade deadline. His first run in Sacramento was brief, ending after two games when he needed season-ending eye surgery after taking a hit to his left eye.
Zach LaVine playfully roasted by De'Andre Hunter before today's media session alongside Leaky Black.
— Sean Cunningham (@SeanCunningham) November 10, 2026
LaVine: "Ask his ass about how he used to guard me in Atlanta."
Hunter: "I didn't, I used to guard a better player in DeMar. That's usually who I guarded - the best player. Not… pic.twitter.com/CBzzdKf3Ho
LaVine has been in Sacramento since February 2025, when the Kings acquired him from the Bulls.
For now, the banter is one of the few bright spots around the team. Sacramento will look to stop the skid Tuesday when it hosts the Orlando Magic, and LaVine will likely be hoping his game does the talking next time.
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