A potential NBA trade agreement has been signed with the Los Angeles Lakers and an All-Star.
The Los Angeles Lakers enter their game against the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday at a mediocre 16-15, despite winning the In-Season NBA Tournament.
Los Angeles has dropped five of its last six games, including a Christmas Day home loss to the Boston Celtics. Simply put, things are not going well for the superstar duo of Anthony Davis and LeBron James.
The Lakers are rumored to be active ahead of the NBA trade deadline of February 8 as a result of this.
Dejounte Murray, the All-Star guard for the Atlanta Hawks, is specifically mentioned in this most recent report by Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Murray appears to be under consideration by the New York Knicks as well, which could be a factor given the Hawks’ lackluster start to the season. In a potential trade for Murray, New York might also give Murray more than the Los Angeles Lakers.
Murray, 27, is still a fantastic player for the Hawks. On 46% shooting from the field, he’s dishing out 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 5.3 assists on average.
Murray, who was an All-Star for the San Antonio Spurs in 2021–22, inked a four-year, $114 million contract extension in July. From the Lakers’ point of view, this complicates matters considerably. Not to mention, Murray cannot be traded until January.
Any such move would probably require Los Angeles to give up a first-round pick to Atlanta and fan favorite Austin Reaves.
Murray and D’Angelo Russell would be paired together to create a new starting backcourt to complement James and Davis in the frontcourt.
However, as was already mentioned, the Knicks might give up more. The Los Angeles Rams’ first-round pick cannot be traded until 2029. The Knicks are currently expected to receive two first-round picks in 2024 and at least two more in 2025.
Why would the Lakers trade Austin Reaves? He is their best shooter on a team that can not shoot. Get rid of Ham, he is clueless about offense and any kind of rotation. Lakers need a strong point guard. To many players handling the ball. NO ball movement, players just stand around most of the time.