New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Proposal Sends Zach LaVine + Dejounte Murray to Lakers, Hawks Get Assets To Retool

What kind of moves will the Atlanta Hawks make this summer?

Jan 30, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray (5) is defended by Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The first big trade of the offseason occurred on Thursday evening when the Chicago Bulls traded guard Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Josh Giddey. There has now been speculation about whether this is only the first of many moves that the Bulls might make in an effort to rebuild and look forward to the future. Yahoo Sports NBA insider Jake Fischer had this to say yesterday about LaVine's future:

"Chicago continues to project a willingness to shuffle its deck, exploring its options to move up in the draft, sources said, and engaging rival teams on LaVine trade scenarios. The Bulls have attempted to find a new home for LaVine since last offseason, according to league sources, but have yet to develop signification traction on deals outside of talks with Detroit that once included Bojan Bogdanović — who’s since been traded to New York — and the Pistons are now under new leadership with president Trajan Langdon.

There isn’t much more room for purported roster shakeups outside of dealing LaVine if Chicago is as intent on keeping Williams and veteran scorer DeMar DeRozan as the Bulls have so far projected, sources said.

LaVine remains merely a backup option for the Sixers, sources said, but not a player whom Philadelphia truly covets with the team’s ocean of cap space. If there’s any suitor for LaVine that seems most likely at this juncture, it would be the Kings. Sacramento remains active in exploring trade opportunities for Harrison Barnes and Kevin Huerter, league sources told Yahoo Sports, with Huerter receiving a healthy amount of external interest. The Kings, at this juncture, are still considering trade possibilities for their No. 13 overall pick in Wednesday’s draft as well, sources said, with combo guard Malik Monk, a top Sixth Man of the Year candidate, agreeing to stay with Sacramento and his close friend, All-Star point guard De’Aaron Fox."

Meanwhile yesterday, NBA insider Shams Charania was on the Pat McAfee show and mentioned that there could still be a level of interest from the Los Angeles Lakers in Dejounte Murray:

"The pressure is on the Lakers front office to make changes to this roster..

They have to be aggressive and I think Dejounte Murray will come up in trade conversations"@ShamsCharania #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/xegZkMdKzu

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 21, 2024

The Lakers and the Hawks have been mentioned as past trade partners and the Lakers in particular are going to be under pressure to make big moves this offseason to take advantage of their window with LeBron James and Anthony Davis. If the Hawks decide to move Murray and build around Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, and the No.1 pick, the Lakers could make sense. If LaVine's trade value has truly lowered, the Lakers could also buy low and try to get the most out of the rest of LeBron's career.

What about a three team deal that helps everyone out? It should be noted that this is just speculative and a fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think a team should definitely do. That is all.

Here is the trade:

Hawks Receive: Rui Hachimura, Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, Lakers 2024 1st round pick (No. 17 overall), and Lakers 2030 1st round pick (unprotected)

Lakers Receive: Dejounte Murray and Zach LaVine

Bulls Receive: D'Angelo Russell, AJ Griffin, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Cam Reddish, 2025 1st round pick (From Atlanta via Sacramento, protected 1-12), and a 2025 2nd round pick via the Lakers

Let's break this trade down.

For the Hawks, they would get two wing players back in return to help them with their size and length issues around Young. Hachimura and Vanderbilt are still young and Vincent could be the Hawks backup point guard next season. The Hawks would get another 1st round pick which they could use to take another young asset and the Lakers 2030 unprotected pick would be valuable. While the Hawks would not get Austin Reaves, the 2030 pick could be really valuable.

For the Lakers, this might be the best chance for them to really maximize their window with James and Davis. They would not have to give up every 1st round pick in the process and add two talented players while keeping Reaves. With Donovan Mitchell potentially re-signing with Cleveland and if the Hawks decide to move Murray instead, Murray could be the top player on the trade market. It feels like the Bulls are going to have a hard time trading LaVine, but the Lakers could buy low on him.

For the Bulls, this would be all about getting LaVine's contract off the books. They get two young players in Griffin and Hood-Schifino that they can see for a year and determine if they have a future with them. Russell and Reddish would have to be in the deal for salary purposes, but they could later flip Russell for something if they wanted. Reddish is still a young player that is on expiring contract, assuming he opts in for this season. The picks would also be helpful for the future.

It is hard to make a trade where all sides are happy, but this could be the best return for any of the teams. Atlanta gets young, athletic wing players to surround Young with and two draft picks. While Hachimura and Vanderbilt will likely never be All-Star players, they could be good fits and they are not on unreasonable contracts either.

The Bulls are likely not going to get a ton for LaVine at this point due to his contract and health, but this could end up being a nice return for them. This is a team that needs to retool for the future and it will be hard to do that with LaVine's money on the books. Getting that contract off is the biggest win for the Bulls in this trade.

It was no secret that the Los Angeles Lakers tried to trade for Hawks guard Dejounte Murray leading up to last year's trade deadline, but nothing happened, with both the Lakers and the Hawks deciding to stand pat with their teams. At one point though, it seemed like a deal between the two teams might happen. According to The Athletic's Jovan Buha, who covers the Lakers, wrote in the weeks leadin up to the trade deadline,"The Murray buzz is only increasing — and to noisy levels. The Lakers and Hawks have discussed potential frameworks of a deal, including a version late last week that centered on Russell, Hood-Schifino, the 2029 first-round pick and additional draft compensation, according to multiple team and league sources. Talks have since stalled, but are expected to pick back up closer to the deadline." You can read the full piece here. 

It was reported that the Hawks did not want Russell back in a deal, but according to Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus, there was a three-team deal discussed between the Lakers, Nets, and Hawks:

"Multiple sources say that before trading for Dennis Schröder, the Brooklyn Nets were in talks with the Lakers for Russell (with L.A. getting Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks). That negotiation died between the Lakers and Hawks, but the Nets still need a starting-caliber guard."

Pincus did not say what the Hawks were getting back in the deal, but I think it would likely have seen the Hawks getting Rui Hachimura, Hood-Schifino, and draft compensation back from the Lakers.

There has been smoke around the Hawks and Lakers about Murray. Los Angeles has also shown interest in LaVine in the past as well. While this deal might be unlikely, it does make some level of sense for everyone involved.