On Wednesday evening, the Cleveland Cavaliers will hit the road to take on the New York Knicks in what will be the first game of the 2025-26 NBA season for both teams. The Cavaliers and Knicks are viewed by many to be the clear favorites in the Eastern Conference this season considering the current state of other would-be contending teams in the East.

There had been some question leading into this matchup about the status of Cavs forward De'Andre Hunter , whom the team acquired from the Atlanta Hawks at the trade deadline last season.

Shortly before tip-off on Wednesday, fans got their answer.

“…starting small forward De’Andre Hunter is OUT for the season opener against the Knicks,” reported NBA insider Chris Fedor of cleveland.com on X, formerly Twitter. Article Continues Below

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