Since he waived his no-trade clause to re-sign with the Lakers this summer, D’Angelo Russell has been a mainstay in NBA trade rumors. However, as the trade deadline of February 8 draws near, he has presented a strong case to stay in Los Angeles.
In his eight games since making a comeback to the starting lineup, Russell “has averaged 27.5 points and 6.4 assists per game while shooting 52.3% percent from the field and 54.2% from the 3-point line,” as seasoned NBA insider Marc Stein noted in his most recent Substack analysis. More significantly, with Russell carrying a heavier offensive load, the team has won six straight games thanks to that production.
Jovan Buha of The Athletic stated this week that the Lakers had begun to “rethink things” when it came to moving Russell, which was the first hint that his play may have prevented the team from shopping him in exchange for upgrades. In his most recent Substack column, Stein was even more conclusive, stating that negotiations between the Lakers and Hawks regarding Dejounte Murray are essentially over.
According to league sources, there hasn’t been much to no trade discussion regarding former All-Star Dejounte Murray between the Hawks and Lakers in recent days.
Though trade discussions are often a moving target this time of year and are easily reignited, one person briefed on the discussions described Murray joining the Lakers by this Sunday’s deadline as “unrealistic.”
Declaring the transaction to be “unrealistic” is undoubtedly the most forceful refutation of this widely circulated transaction since the rumors and whispers first surfaced. Although Stein acknowledged that there’s always a chance the deadline-related stress could reignite things, he doesn’t think that scenario is particularly likely at this time:
