Hawks Stuck Near the Bottom of Latest Power Rankings

Atlanta is 12-18 after their latest loss to the Bulls

It has been a rough season for the Atlanta Hawks so far. 

This team has been dealing with injuries all season to important members of their team and has not been able to find their stride, despite Trae Young playing some of the best basketball of his career. He just had a seven-game streak of at least 30 points and 10 assists snapped, but he is playing like a starter in the All-Star game. 

Atlanta has been near the bottom of the power rankings on both NBA.com and ESPN and that remained the case today when ESPN released their new power rankings and had the Hawks at No. 22. 

DeMar DeRozan vs the Hawks / David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

Here is what analyst Andrew Lopez had to say about what he has seen from the Hawks over the past week:

"One step forward for these Atlanta Hawks -- and one step back. The team finally saw the return of Jalen Johnson on Tuesday night after the third-year forward missed more than a month with a left wrist injury. Johnson was enjoying a breakout campaign, averaging 14.2 points and 7.3 rebounds on 59.4% shooting in the first 15 games he played. In the Hawks' loss to the Bulls on Tuesday, Johnson had 10 points, four assists and nine rebounds. However, forward De'Andre Hunter underwent a non-surgical procedure on Tuesday to address right knee inflammation. The team said he will be re-evaluated in two weeks."

While the Hawks continue to flounder around, the trade rumors are picking up for this team and they are including star guard Dejounte Murray. 

The Dejounte Murray trade rumors are out in full force now, with the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers coming up as possible options for the Hawks guard.

Yesterday, NBA insider Shams Charania had this to say about the Lakers interest in 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"

Getting Johnson back is huge for this team, but without Hunter, they have only one good perimeter defender. This team could look a lot different in a month or so the way things are starting to trend. 

The Hawks Should Not Be Interested in a Dejounte Murray Trade With the Lakers

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