Despite Dejounte Murray Trade, Atlanta Hawks Can’t Afford to Mess Up

The trade of All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks to the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday shook the NBA world.

Atlanta received Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance Jr., E.J. Liddell and two first-round picks from New Orleans in exchange for Murray. It was seen as below-market value for one of the Association’s top two-way guards.

To some, this is a clear indication that general manager Landry Fields and Co. are going to blow it up. With Murray and Trae Young in the mix last season, the Hawks couldn’t even make it out of the NBA Play-In Tournament.

That’s highly unlikely to be the case given what the Hawks gave up for Murray in a trade with the San Antonio Spurs ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Let us explain.

Related: Updated Atlanta Hawks News and Rumors

The Atlanta Hawks can’t afford to go into full-scale rebuild mode

Each of the Hawks’ first-round picks over the next three years will head to the Spurs. Not everyone is protected.

It really doesn’t make sense for Atlanta to go into rebuild mode if they don’t make their selections first. This would simply give San Antonio three absolutely huge assets to pair with Victor Wembanyama.

This means the Hawks have a good chance of retaining Trae Young, who has been involved in trade rumors throughout the offseason.