With rumors connecting Dejounte Murray to the Los Angeles Lakers heating up, one NBA insider has revealed what the team is willing to give up in a possible deal.
“The Lakers appear to have made the most aggressive known bid to date for Murray,” wrote Jake Fischer. “Los Angeles has been willing to include a 2029 first-round pick plus a pick swap in its attempts to land the [Atlanta] Hawks guard, league sources told Yahoo Sports. Atlanta is searching for a better player return than [D’Angelo] Russell, sources said, and the Hawks seem to prefer not taking back future salary, leaving the possibility for another three-team deal at the deadline that includes Russell — after he joined the Lakers by way of last February’s Utah-Minnesota-Los Angeles triple dip. Russell holds an $18.6 million player option for next season that will factor into any team’s decision to obtain the Ohio State product.”
It was recently reported that the Lakers and Hawks have talked about potential frameworks for a deal, with one possible makeup including Russell, a 2029 first-round pick, Jalen Hood-Schifino and additional draft compensation.
It seems as though the Hawks aren’t all that interested in keeping Russell despite his recent string of games. Since being reinserted into the Lakers starting lineup, Russell is averaging 27.4 points and 6.6 assists per game on 53.8 percent shooting from the field and 53.1 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Odds of the Lakers keeping him have reportedly increased due to that stretch, something that likely doesn’t come as a surprise to many.
The trade deadline is set for Feb. 8, which leaves the Lakers less than two weeks to make any deals to upgrade their roster. After beating the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night, Los Angeles is now back at .500 with a 23-23 record.
Los Angeles has been inconsistent all season long and currently sits in ninth place in the Western Conference. It is four games back of the New Orleans Pelicans for the conference’s final guaranteed playoff spot.
Perhaps a move for Murray will spark the team the same way midseason trades in the 2022-23 campaign did. Los Angeles made moves for Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura before making it all the way to the Western Conference Finals, where it got swept by the Denver Nuggets.
Murray, 27, is recording 21.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in his second season with the Hawks. For the Lakers, he would provide a different skill set to that of Russell.
Only time will tell if a deal gets done, but the clock continues to tick for both sides.
