Jazz Made Offer for Hawks G Dejounte Murray According to NBA Insider
With less than one week until the trade deadline, the rumors connecting Atlanta Hawks Dejounte Murray and the Utah Jazz continue to trickle in. The latest comes from NBA insider Jake Fischer from Yahoo Sports, claiming the Jazz are one of two teams that made an offer for Murray. Fischer made the claim on the Saturday Sports World Podcast with Marc Stein.
“The only teams I’ve heard actual offers about have been from the Lakers and Utah.”
If the Jazz have their eyes on him, he won’t be cheap. The Hawks sacrificed three picks and a pick swap for Murray less than two years ago and will be looking to recoup most of that back.
Regarding his contract starting next season, Murray is signed through the 2026-27 year for a total of 80.3 million and has a player option for 30.7 million in 2027-28. The Jazz have the financial flexibility to make the upgrade, but it does put a big dent in Utah's ability to compete in the free-agent market moving forward.
The move would most likely make Utah a playoff team, but more major upgrades would still be necessary if they want to make a run at the championship. Also, if Utah is considering Murray, where does that leave rookie point guard Keyonte George?
The only way Utah makes a push on Murray is if they're not sold on George being the point guard of the future. There have been times when George has been Utah's best facilitator with the ball in his hands.
However, his inefficiency as a scorer has been an issue in his first season. He's currently only shooting 37.8% from the field and 32.3% from long distance. Should Utah give George another year to develop before committing themselves to a player like Murray?
Also, would Utah have to include Collin Sexton in an exchange with the Hawks? Sexton is emerging as a key piece to Utah's future. In January, he averaged 20.6 points on a very efficient 50.4% shooting from the field.
After this season, Sexton is owed 37 million over a two-year span. Those things considered, it feels like a lateral move if Sexton was part of the equation.
One last thing to consider is if Murray did find his way to Salt Lake City, then how would he mesh with Sexton? Both are ball-dominant guards who can score, and it feels like Utah might have the same problems that Murray has when playing with Trae Young. I'm not so sure having two ball-dominant guards would work playing alongside Lauri Markkanen.
It's difficult to assess how serious Utah is without knowing exactly what was offered, but at the least, it's interesting that they may be targeting an upgrade to their backcourt rather than a player that can replace Simone Fontecchio at the small forward position.
Jazz fans will get answers soon, with the trade deadline slated for February 8.
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