10 Players the Hawks could replace Dejounte Murray with by the trade deadline

Andrew Wiggins would bring championship-caliber defense

The Golden State Warriors won a championship just two seasons ago largely thanks in large part to Andrew Wiggins’ efforts on defense and the glass. But this season, he has found himself relegated to the bench.

Golden State has inserted Jonathan Kuminga into the starting lineup and, for whatever reason, perhaps redundancy, it hasn’t worked alongside Wiggins. 

That could be the Hawks’ opportunity to slip in and acquire a proven player who can play 2-4.

Wiggins shot better than 38% from three-point range before this season, and he is still just 28 years old. With the Warriors fighting to remain in the Play-In Race at this still-early stage of the season, getting to Wiggins before he and they find their groove could be prudent.

Kevin Durant and Trae Young are close

This would require things to revert to previous trends for the Phoenix Suns, who have won three straight games to get back above .500 on the season. Before that, though, they had lost three straight, and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported some around the Suns sensed “frustration” from the former Warriors star.

Durant gave a soft refutation of Wojnarowski’s report. But his previous situations have devolved to the point that he has requested trades before.

The Hawks could look to take advantage of another of those situations if they hit another skid.

Durant is older and comes with significant injury concerns. The Hawks would also have to be careful just how much they give up to acquire him since he is older, expensive, and could always sour on being in Atlanta.

But he and Young are close dating back to Durant’s days with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and he has touted his positive impact as a teammate.

It could be a worthwhile pairing if the Hawks move out Murray, either directly to Phoenix or otherwise.