The San Antonio Spurs have agreed to trade Dejounte Murray with the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Danilo Gallinari, three future first-round picks and a future first-round swap, CBS Sports HQ’s Bill Reiter confirmed Wednesday. Spurs will have a 2023 first-round pick via the Charlotte Hornets, and unprotected first-round transfers 2025 and 2027 via the Hawks. The exchange of choice will be between Tottenham and Hawks in 2026.
Murray, who returned late in the first round in 2016, is coming off the best season of his career, leading the league in steals and making an All-Star game for the first time. He averaged 21.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 9.2 assists, and two steals, while shooting 46.2 percent from the field. All of these degrees were at the highest professional levels. The Hawks will now pair him with Trae Young to form one of the best young backyards in the league.
As for Spurs, they are heading for a rebuild – they hope will put them first pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and a chance to grab Victor Wimpanyama. The 7-foot-2, 18-year-old French big man is widely seen as a generation prospect, and has already impressed as a professional in his home country.
Let’s do the trade.
hawks
to receive:
After their surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, the Falcons seemed to be a team on the rise. Instead, they slipped last season and had to make a big comeback against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoff only to slip into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed.
In January, when the team was still stumbling under 0.500, GM Travis Schlink gave an interesting interview in which he admitted to reading a lot in the playoff round in 2021. “Maybe I need to lower my expectations for this team,” he said. Schlink said. “I have to accept this responsibility because it might not have been a great idea to bring everyone back. That’s on me.”
At that point, it was clear that whatever happened over the last few months of last season, the Hawks were in the summer of my transformation. To his credit, Schlink didn’t wait long to put his words into action, acquiring one of the league’s most versatile young guards.
How far the Falcons will be able to challenge established contenders in the Upper East remains to be seen – and will depend on what other moves they make this summer – but they are now much better than they were before the trade. Here’s a look at the reinforcement Murray gave them based on predictions from SportsLine data scientist Stephen Oh:
|
without Murray |
41.2 |
54.6% |
1.6% |
|
with Murray |
44.0 |
71.6% |
4.8% |
|
Effect |
+2.8 |
+ 17.0% |
+ 3.2% |
Murray, who led the league in steals last season, is one of the best defenders around the world thanks in large part to his impressive 6-foot-10 wingspan. He would be able to cover some of Trae Young’s problems on this side of the ball , and will single-handedly improve the defense of the Hawks who finished 26th in the league last season and allowed 113.7 points per 100 ownership.
In addition, Murray is a talented playmaker and is coming off the most efficient scoring season. It’s worth noting, however, that it’s better to finish a game around the edge or score than midrange, hitting just 32.7 percent of three-point grounds last season. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the trade is that it seems to require Young to play ball more than he has in his career.
Young, who hit 48.1 percent of three-pointers last season (albeit only one per game), is able to do so. However, it would require a serious purchase from a player more used to having the ball in his hands than just anyone in the league. In addition, it will be interesting to see how this will affect the attack of the hawks. Despite all of their defensive woes, they scored last season, and finished second in the league with 115.4 points per 100 possessions behind Young’s aggressive pick-and-roll style.
But whatever growing pains might come next season, this trade made no sense to the hawks. They’ve got a 25-year-old All-Star on the rise for what will be a few late first-round picks if all goes as planned.
Grade: A
Tottenham
to receive:
- Danilo Galinari
- 2023 first round pick via Charlotte Hornets
- 2025 first round pick via Atlanta Hawks (unprotected)
- 2026 First round selection swap via Atlanta Hawks
- 2027 first round pick via Atlanta Hawks (unprotected)
When Tottenham replaced Derek White to the Boston Celtics versus Josh Richardson, and Romeo Langford, in the 2022 first round (who became Blake Wesley) and swapped the 2028 first-round pick in the trade deadline last season, it came out as something like that. Surprise. Now, though, we can see it as the first step in the teardown.
They continued to break up their roster on Wednesday by exchanging Murray, one of the most interesting young guards in the league, coming up with the best season of his career. There is no hiding their intentions at this point: Tottenham’s diving team head first into the Victor Wimpanyama lottery.
It’s hard to blame them. Wimpanyama, the 7-foot-2, 18-year-old Frenchman is one of the most intriguing prospects on the world stage perhaps ever. His ridiculous combination of size, height, and coordination make him a devastating defensive force that can challenge every shot at the edge and more than stick alone on the ocean. Offensively he is a constant threat and has shown a great touch away from the basket. (more on, Check out this split by Kyle Boone.)
If the Spurs tank succeeds, and they end up with the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, this could go down as a trade that changed the league. Wimpanyama has a chance to be that special. However, the deal places a lot of stake in winning the lottery, which is no guarantee given the flat new prospects.
You could have the worst record in the league by 10 games and still easily end up with a No. 3 pick. There is still a good player available in that selection, but no Wimpanyama. If that happens, you’re really dealing with the Hawks’ meltdown in a few years – which is less likely now that they have Murray.
The 2023 pick will likely be via the Hornets in the middle of the first round, and the 2025 pick will be via the Hawks towards the back half of the first round as well. The first 2026 and 2027 swaps via the Hawks are too far into the future to discuss with any certainty, but there’s a good chance either. In this very realistic scenario, you didn’t get much in return for the All-Star Ranger entering its prime.
Of course, Spears knows all of this, just as they know that by keeping Murray (and White), they’ll be letting their wheels spin around mediocre. Getting into everything to Wembanyama is a risk, but the potential payoff could change their franchise forever. Only time will tell if their bet will come through or not.
Grade: incomplete
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