NBA Insider Says Hawks Guard Dejounte Murray is a Trade Target for the Lakers
The Dejounte Murray trade buzz is starting to grow louder around the Hawks.
Over the past week, there have been rumors around Murray being a trade target for the New York Knicks, but there could be a new team to monitor when it comes to Murray.
NBA insider Shams Charania spoke about this recently and here is what he had to say about the Lakers possibly targeting Murray:
"One player that I am told to keep an eye on, a potential target for the Lakers, Hawks guard Dejounte Murray. Murray still has four years, $120 million of an extension that kicks in next season, so that is a little bit better when you think of a reasonable salary to be bringing in when you already have LeBron James and Anthony Davis on your books.
The Hawks's direction of course, it is in flux, they gave up multiple first-round picks and a swap to go and get Dejounte Murray a couple of summers ago from the Spurs"
Check out Sharania's full comments in the video below.
I think the interest in Murray will be more on the Laker's side. Los Angeles does not have a lot of trade assets that the Hawks find desirable outside of potentially Austin Reaves and the Lakers have shown a reluctance to trade him. The Lakers are short on picks as well. Anything could happen, but I don't think the Hawks will be interested in anything the Lakers have to offer.
Dejounte Murray vs the Grizzlies
Sunday, NBA insider Ian Begley shared that some prominent members of the Knicks organization view Murray as an ideal trade target:
"Some prominent members of the organization see Atlanta's Dejounte Murray as an ideal trade target. New York had interest in trading for Murray in the 2022 offseason. At that point, Murray was viewed by some as a great fit with lead guard Jalen Brunson."
Is Atlanta thinking about trading Murray? Begley went on to say that they have been receptive:
"Teams say that Atlanta has been receptive to trade offers this season, the first full year for head coach Quinn Snyder. Hoopshype earlier reported that the Knicks are among the teams who expressed exploratory trade interest in Murray. Moving Murray would be a seismic shift for Atlanta. And it would surely require several first-round picks and young, ascending players."
This would be a huge shift for the Hawks, but it could be what the team needs to do to build a competitive team around star point guard Trae Young. Young is playing the best basketball of his career, but it is starting to become clear that this team is perhaps not built in the right way.
There could be one potential road block for the Hawks in a potential Murray trade to the Knicks and Begley outlined that in his article:
"The Knicks can put that kind of package together. But for New York, there is an additional hurdle in a potential Murray trade.
Murray is represented by Rich Paul and Klutch Sports Group. The New York Daily News reported in 2022 that Klutch opposed a trade of client Zach LaVine to the Knicks. That dynamic is still present today. I’m told that Paul remains reluctant to do business with the Knicks, who are led by team president Leon Rose and executive vice president William Wesley. Rose and Wesley were both top agents at CAA before they took over the Knicks.
The Hawks, obviously, can trade Murray -- or any other player -- to the Knicks or any other organization if they see fit. But if the Hawks decided to trade Murray, they would almost assuredly work closely with Paul and Klutch to find a suitable destination. That's often how things work in the NBA."
Dejounte Murray vs the Pistons
There is a lot of noise around the Hawks potentially trading Murray and it is something to keep an eye on in the weeks leading up to the trade deadline. Atlanta has also been mentioned as a potential destination for Raptors forward Pascal Siakam and Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen.
In recent weeks, the pairing of Young and Murray has been criticized around the NBA:
When appearing on Bill Simmons podcast a couple of weeks ago, Doc Rivers was discussing the pairing of Murray and Young and if he thought it would work and he gave his honest assessment:
"It has not worked. They are both small in size. Now, Murray will try to defend and he is very competitive, but he is still small at the end of the day and slight. Yeah... I don't see it working. I'm with you, I thought Q (Haws head coach Quin Snyder) would come in and change them and they have, they have been better on offense at times, but after that, they are not a deep team and you just don't see it on a night-to-night basis with them.
Will the Hawks trade Murray and will it be to the Knicks or the Lakers? That is unknown now, but the rumors are starting to pick up and that is telling in my opinion.
Follow Jackson on X here: @jacksoncauell
Follow Hawks coverage on Facebook here: All Hawks
