Dejounte Murray is the best player currently available on the commercial market. The Lakers are the team that needs a talent upgrade the most.
At first glance, a trade between the two sides makes sense. So why hasn’t it happened yet?
Here is the framework of the most recent agreement that has been discussed, according to Jovan Buha of The Athleticalong with what both sides are probably thinking about the trade.
Why the Lakers say yes and no: Dejounte Murray to the Lakers for D’Angelo Russell and prospect package
Trade
Murray and Wesley Matthews for D’Angelo Russell, Jalen Hood-Schifino, a 2029 first-round pick and four second-round picks.
Why this trade?
Russell is the Laker most likely to leave, due to his salary. He’s played better lately, but Murray would surely be an upgrade.
Austin Reaves would also make sense from an equivalent salary perspective, and the Hawks would prefer to have him. But he has become too good for the Lakers to part with him.
Hood-Schifino, the No. 17 pick in the 2023 draft, is one of the few young assets with trade value the Lakers have. They are also adding every pick they have available into this proposal to make it as enticing as possible for the Hawks.
Why the Lakers say yes
The Lakers desperately need to improve their offense, which is 20th place in the league.
Murray averages 21.4 points per game for the Hawks. He is a good shot creator and pick-and-roll operator who has been excellent throughout his career from mid-range. A more recent development is his 3-point shooting: he’s hitting 37 percent of those shots, which could certainly bolster the Lakers’ offense. ranked 28 in 3’s. He could take some of the strain off LeBron James while still being able to play off the ball.
Murray is also a much better defender than Russell. While he’s not at the level of his all-defensive 2018 team, he can hold his own in a matchup. Russell, on the other hand, has been attacked so thoroughly in playoff series that he hasn’t been able to stay on the court.
Murray also has a lot to do in the future. He will begin a four-year, $114 million extension next season starting at $24.8 million per year. For a former All-Star entering his prime years, that’s a bargain.
Why the Lakers say no
Even with Murray on this team, is this enough to go further than his run in the Western Conference Finals last season? The team is barely above .500, and this move further jeopardizes its future.
If the Lakers decide to play out the year without reaching a deal like this, then they won’t win a championship. But they will have three first-round picks to trade after the draft, and they can target a better player than Murray if one is available.
Russell has also been on fire lately, averaging 23.6 points per game since January 11. Maybe hold this out and see if he can keep up that pace.
Would the Hawks even approve of this?
It hasn’t even been two full seasons since the Hawks traded three first-round picks and a pick swap for Murray. Getting such a poor performance for him right now would be a very difficult pill to swallow. But they are looking to transfer him and this may be the best offer there is.
Murray and Trae Young haven’t worked as well together as Atlanta hoped. The Hawks have been playing better lately, but still sit in 10th place in the East. They need to restructure and try to build a better team around their All-Star shooting guard.
Getting Russell back also complicates things. He doesn’t make much sense next to Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic: his defense would be too problematic. The Hawks would probably have to find a third team to face him.
Hood-Schifino has barely played for the Lakers this season. The point for him is that he has great size at the guard position and could be a good two-way player. If he hits, he would look great next to Young.
While this is all the Lakers can realistically offer without including Reaves in the deal, this seems like a situation where the Hawks say no. They have never been ones to pull the trigger quickly. John Collins is a great example: after perpetually being on the trade block, the team essentially had to give him away to the Jazz.
Unless they are particularly excited about Hood-Schifino or can find a third team for Russell, Atlanta will likely look for better deals in the summer.
