NBA Insider Says That Dejounte Murray is Still the Laker's Top Trade Target

Murray has been linked to the Lakers the most leading up to the trade deadline

There has been no shortage of rumors connecting Hawks guard Dejounte Murray to the Los Angeles Lakers and ahead of next Thursday's trade deadline, you can expect to hear plenty more, especially with the Lakers in need of some moves and change around their roster. 

The Hawks have won two in a row and are finally healthy, but that is not likely to drastically change their plans before next Thursday. That does not guarantee they will make any deals, but the Hawks have long been rumored as a potential seller as we get closer to the trade deadline.

On today's episode of Run it Back, prominent NBA insider Shams Charania maintained that Murray is going to continue to emerge as the top trade target for the Los Angeles Lakers:

"Dejounte Murray is going to continue to emerge as the top target for the Lakers from what I am told, the sides, I expect talks to resume before the deadline next Thursday."

"Dejounte Murray is going to continue to emerge as the top target for the Lakers, from what I'm told...Another scenario to keep an eye on, players that the Lakers do have interest in I'm told, is three guys from the Nets: Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie, Royce O'Neale."… pic.twitter.com/fSlRUxzzpq

— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) January 31, 2024

It is interesting that Charania mentions the Nets because there have been some scenarios proposed by analysts around the NBA of a three-team deal between the Hawks, Lakers, and Nets. 

The Lakers have been looking for upgrades to go alongside Anthony Davis and LeBron James and Murray makes sense for a lot of reasons. The holdup has been the Hawks' reported refusal to take back Lakers guard D'Angelo Russell but in a new proposed three-team trade from ESPN NBA analyst Kevin Pelton, that problem gets solved:

Los Angeles Lakers get: Dejounte Murray

Atlanta Hawks get: Spencer Dinwiddie, 2029 first-round pick (via Lakers)

Brooklyn Nets get: D'Angelo Russell

"The Murray-Lakers fit is a natural one. He's a Klutch client who happens to be the best player the Lakers could reasonably add before the trade deadline. The big hang-up is the Lakers' matching salary. Russell's salary is virtually identical, but the Hawks wouldn't want him to exercise an $18.7 million player option that could prevent them from re-signing restricted free agent Saddiq Bey without pushing into the luxury tax.

Enter the Nets, who could bring Russell home to prop up their ailing offense. Russell's lone All-Star appearance came as part of a young Brooklyn team similar in many ways to the current group. With Dinwiddie slumping this season, Russell would be a massive offensive upgrade for the Nets, who can comfortably handle his 2024-25 player option. Dinwiddie is in the final season of his contract, allowing Atlanta to either re-sign him to a smaller deal using Bird rights or allow him to walk in unrestricted free agency."

Will this be enough for the Hawks to consider making a deal? Their reported asking price for Murray has been very high. 

Dejounte Murray vs the Lakers / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Milwaukee Bucks made the decision to fire first-year head coach Adrian Griffin last week and made the quick decision to hire former Celtics, Clippers, and 76ers head coach Doc Rivers to try and get them steered in the right direction.

Yahoo Sports Jake Fischer detailed the downfall of Griffin and the problems Milwaukee is having and what they might do to fix them. Fischer talked about trade candidates for the Bucks and mentioned Murray as a possible target. When talking about the Bucks's potential pursuit of Murray, Fischer detailed the price tag that the Hawks are asking for Murray:

"A deal highlighted by the No. 35 pick probably isn’t going to strike Atlanta’s fancy for Murray, considering the Hawks, at present, are searching for a pair of first-round picks plus a starting-level player for their All-Star combo guard, league sources told Yahoo Sports."

It will be interesting to see the actual return for Murray if he is indeed traded and it still seems like that is the direction things are trending. Keep an eye on this one moving forward. 

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