Last season, the Lakers reshuffled their roster by signing D’Angelo Russell, Jared Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Mo Bamba, and Rui Hachimura before the trade deadline, which helped lead Los Angeles to the Western Conference finals. Looking ahead to this season, don’t expect the Lakers to make multiple big trades, but they do have interest in players who could be key additions to their backcourt. Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported that the Lakers made an offer to Atlanta Hawks point guard Dejounte Murray on Tuesday. The deal would include starting veteran point guard D’Angelo Russell, rookie Jalen Hood-Schifino and draft compensation. Siegel added that The Athletic’s Jovan Buha first reported that the trade package was rejected “out of the blue” because Atlanta didn’t want Russell in exchangeAccording to numerous reports, the Lakers were seeking Murray from the Hawks and were open to adding Russell as a player to facilitate a potential trade. At the start of Tuesday’s game, Russell and Murray were guarding each other, an interesting scene considering all the conversations. “I think I’ve made it clear that I don’t comment on rumors or speculation.” “We don’t need you!” they shouted over and over again. There was a moment in the fourth quarter when Hawks fans understood why they still wanted Murray and why the Lakers were showing so much interest in the two-way guard. Murray won the game with 24 points on 11-of-19 shooting, nine assists, and two steals.When Murray hit a straight drive to the basket to give the Hawks an 18-point lead, Lakers coach Darvin Ham called a timeout with 3:21 left. It was a tougher game for the Lakers, as Anthony Davis was out with Achilles tendon pain and left hip spasms, but he was a non-starter. Asked if he would play Thursday in Boston against the Celtics, Davis was emphatic. But without him against the Hawks, 39-year-old LeBron James would play in back-to-back games and lead the Lakers. James had 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in 36 minutes. The journey will only get more difficult for the Lakers, who have a game Thursday night in Boston, a team with the NBA’s best record (37-11) and a 22-2“There was something I wanted to quote. ‘So, I didn’t mean it that way…I didn’t mean it that way.” He was also asked whether it was normal for players to post messages on social media so close to a game. “No, no, no,” Wood said. Fans had this to say:
