Hawks' Dejounte Murray sends fired-up message on trade rumors

The offseason only officially began with the conclusion of the NBA Finals but the Atlanta Hawks have been a major talking point for months. 

Their plans became more intriguing with landing the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft. But the fate of their star backcourt duo – Dejounte Murray and Trae Young – has been the driving force behind rumors since the trade deadline.

Murray has heard all of it.

“IM IN THAT MF MODE I SWEAR!!!!” Murray captioned a post on Instagram on June 18. “Trade Talks Turn #DM5 Up To The MAXIMUM!!!!”

Murray’s name was the one most bandied about at the deadline, with the Hawks rumored to have held advanced trade talks with the Los Angeles Lakers as well as discussions to some degree with the New Orleans Pelicans and San Antonio Spurs.

Talks with the Lakers broke down over compensation. 

The Pelicans are expected to check back in with the Hawks this offseason while the Spurs have been linked closer to Young since the deadline.

This is another chance for Murray to take his game to another level. He delivered on his promise from last summer to have his best season even as the team fell short of his mandated goal. Murray averaged a career-high 22.5 points with 6.4 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals.

He also shot 36.3% on a career-high 7.1 attempts from beyond the arc.

More than that, Murray showcased his skillset as a lead guard, averaging 24.8 points, 9.2 assists, 5.7 boards, 1.8 steals during a 23-game stretch with Young sidelined by injury.

Murray also shot 36.4% on 9.3 threes per game during that span. He is set to begin a four-year, $114 million contract that has been central in his appeal to other teams and to the Hawks, whose decision on which guard to deal apparently remains unsettled.

Dejounte Murray has been candid about tumultuous Hawks tenure

Murray has brushed aside trade speculation on numerous occasions, including during a sitdown with Young on the “From The Point” podcast.

He has also been candid about experiencing more drama over the past two seasons than he expected when both he and Young were driving factors in the trade coming together and the initial optimism around the pairing.

Through those two seasons, though, the Hawks have posted net efficiency differentials of plus-1.6 in 2022-23 and  minus-6.3 in 2023-24, per Cleaning The Glass.

There have been good and bad subsets in both seasons.

Hawks general manager Landry Fields said that the front office (and coaching staff) will sort through all of that before making their decision, pointing to the development of certain aspects of the current group’s development as encouraging signs.

Whether that means they will hold off on blowing up the backcourt – most likely at a net loss – remains to be seen.

Wherever Murray plays next season, he figures to be as motivated as ever. That is a good thing.