Another star is about to hit the trade market.
Yahoo Sports reported on the Atlanta Hawks’ trade deadline on Wednesday (Feb. 13).
“Atlanta has decided to keep Dejounte Murray, which could be a bigger decision for the next trade deadline. This could lead to serious trade discussions about Trae Young. The San Antonio Spurs will be the most eager suitors for Young, and the 현금홀덤사이트 Los Angeles Lakers will be in the mix.”
Atlanta has been the team most mentioned in trade rumors throughout the season. In addition to starting guard Murray, a number of other players have been linked to trades, including DeAndre Hunter, Clint Capela, and Bogdan Bogdanovic.
However, none of the players left the team, nor was there any significant reinforcements, meaning Atlanta decided to keep its current roster.
Atlanta currently sits at 24 wins and 30 losses, good for 10th place in the Eastern Conference. The current standings would put them in the play-in tournament rather than the playoffs. The play-in tournament is a one-game playoff, so there are no guarantees. It would be a gamble for Atlanta.
That’s why the decision to keep Murray is questionable. The coexistence of Murray and Young was seen as a failure, and it felt like the perfect opportunity to trade Murray.
It’s possible that Atlanta didn’t have an offer they liked for Murray, or that they saw him as the core of the team long-term.
Murray has five seasons left on his contract, including this season. And it’s true that ball-handlers of Murray’s caliber are very hard to come by in the NBA right now.
But as I said, the coexistence of Young and Murray seems to be a failure. Murray’s retention could create a butterfly effect for Young’s trade.
Young is one of the best offensive guards in the NBA. Young is still averaging a dominant 27 points and 10.8 assists per game this season. Young is the omega and alpha of Atlanta’s offense.
Despite his obvious weaknesses on defense, he’s such a dominant offensive force that he’s often referred to as the NBA’s superstar.
If Young were to be traded, he would likely command a hefty price tag.
San Antonio, which has been mentioned as a possible destination for Young, appears to be a team that could match the offer. The Spurs took Atlanta’s draft pick in the Murray trade. Atlanta would be desperate to get their pick back.
Also, San Antonio is currently 10 games out of first place in the Western Conference with a 43-43 record, so their 2024 NBA Draft pick will be extremely valuable. The Spurs also have other attractive prospects in Devin Wassel, Keldon Johnson, and Jeremy Sohan.
San Antonio would have been willing to give up everything but Victor Wembanyama for Young.
It will be interesting to see if the butterfly effect of Murray’s retention will affect Young’s move.