MORE: Murray to face Djokovic in Abu Dhabi final
The Australian veteran claimed the ATP 250 title last year, beating Swiss great Roger Federer in the final in Queensland.
But the world number 50 needs to defend at least a large part of the 250 points he won at the event in 2014 to maintain a solid ranking.
Hewitt, 33, said his focus was on winning titles, not his ranking.
"I couldn't care about points and rankings anymore," he said.
"For me I would have taken it any time of the year to win a title and then have to go out there and play for those points, it doesn't faze me."
Hewitt will face plenty of competition if he is to go on a deep run once more.
Federer returns as the top seed, with Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov also competing.
The tournament was hit by two high-profile withdrawals in the lead-up as Croatian US Open champion Marin Cilic and Argentine star Juan Martin del Potro pulled out.
Hewitt, who is in Raonic's quarter, faces fellow Australian Sam Groth in the first round.
The top four seeds were handed a bye through their first rounds, with Federer to face either Australian wildcard John Millman or a qualifier in the second.
Japan's Nishikori meets either Marinko Matosevic or Steve Johnson in the second round in what is a relatively friendly draw.
Canada's Raonic is likely to face Kazakh Mikhail Kukushkin, while Dimitrov takes on either Frenchman Jeremy Chardy or Andrey Golubev.
South African Kevin Anderson, Frenchmen Gilles Simon and Julien Benneteau and Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov are the other seeds.