New B/R Trade Wants Hawks to Reset, Send Trae Young to Lakers in Massive Deal

The Atlanta Hawks are facing one of the biggest offseasons in the NBA and that was true even before landing the No. 1 pick. The Hawks have a ton of options in front of them, but the biggest question remains what they will do with Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. Since the trade for Murray in the summer of 2022, the results have been disappointing. Atlanta was eliminated in the first round against the Boston Celtics last season, then lost in the play-in tournament to the Chicago Bulls this season. Many expect the Hawks to make a move, but which point guard will they trade and where will they trade them?

Atlanta was shopping Murray up until the trade deadline this season and one of the teams interested in Murray was the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are looking for a star to pair with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but it might not be Murray they’re looking for. There have been rumors that they are into Young and would like to trade for him this summer. Since Young left Klutch Sports and joined CAA, some of these discussions have diminished.

Still, until a trade happens, there will be rumors that the Lakers are pursuing Young and a trade proposal from Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes would send the star point guard to Los Angeles for a familiar set of trade assets that Hawks fans have gotten used to seeing. :

The exchange

The Los Angeles Lakers acquire Trae Young from the Atlanta Hawks for Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2031 first-round pick.

“With no clear top talent available to select No. 1 in the 2024 NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks can’t exactly justify moving Trae Young because they have everything lined up to replace him. They can, however, use their privileged position at No. 1 to sell a broader reconfiguration of the roster.

Owning a top overall pick provides excellent coverage for a soft reset.

Under that assumption, the Hawks put the ball in Dejounte Murray’s hands full-time, a tactic that has yielded solid-to-good results in 2023-24. Atlanta posted a net rating of plus-0.8 when Murray played without Young and was an even better plus-4.7 when Bogdan Bogdanović manned the other guard position.

Reaves would provide a flexible third guard option in this rotation, while Hachimura and a healthy Vincent would be useful role players on a Hawks roster that will likely be without Saddiq Bey (injury, restricted free agency) and Wesley Matthews (unrestricted) .

Young is set to make $43 million next year and $46 million in 2025-26 with a $49 million player option for 2026-27. That’s a steep price for an offensive guard whose leadership qualities haven’t really been on display thus far in his career. Or at least, that’s the argument the Lakers will use to justify not including another first-round pick in their offer.

Atlanta doesn’t face a financial imperative to move Young, but general manager Landry Fields seems convinced the Young-Murray backcourt isn’t working. He may even have damaged his team’s commercial influence by spreading this belief.

For the Lakers, it’s a pure star game. LeBron James and Anthony Davis need two-way supporting pieces more than anything else, but Young has had several seasons in which he is ranked among the most efficient offensive forces in the league. His potential impact on Los Angeles’ offense and his ability to create easy looks for James and Davis could pay off big time. »

Before delving into this, it’s worth noting that the Hawks did not make Young available for trade and Young did not request to be traded. This is just speculation and I still think Young will stay in Atlanta once all is said and done this summer. It appears Atlanta is headed toward breaking up its backcourt consisting of Young and Dejounte Murray, but that could mean Murray is the one who gets traded. Atlanta was shopping Murray this season, including against the Lakers. There have been numerous reports from “Rival Executives” about the possibility of the Hawks trading Trae Young, but nothing from Young or the Hawks themselves.

If Atlanta makes Young available, there will be more teams than the Lakers attempting to trade for Young. I think other teams can also do a lot more for Young than the Lakers.

When considering a potential trade, it’s hard to get excited if you’re the Hawks about what the Lakers could offer outside of some draft picks. Austin Reaves is an intriguing player, but shouldn’t be the centerpiece of a deal for a player of Trae Young’s caliber. I don’t think this is the kind of trade the Hawks should make. The picks are too far in the future and with Young on the Lakers, it at least gives them a high floor where they won’t be among the worst teams in the league, making those picks less valuable. Reaves and Hachimura would just be role players alongside Murray and whoever the Hawks select at No. 1.

On ESPN’s Get Up after the Lakers’ playoff loss, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst discussed Young as a trade target for the Lakers this offseason.

“There are opportunities for them, not necessarily in free agency, but via trade. They will have up to three first-round picks that they can trade, starting on draft night, including the first-round pick of this year if they want and they have some pieces on their roster that they can use in trade Now which player would it be Well we will have to see what happens with the players. stars at the end of the season in the league This is Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks The Hawks could look to split their backcourt of Young and Dejounte Murray. During this season Trae is the type of player that will be of interest to several teams. If the Hawks decide to make a move, I’m not sure he solves a lot of the Lakers’ problems, perimeter defense was a problem for the. Lakers this season and in this series, that’s something Trae is not going to do. “

This summer is shaping up to be a potentially wild one in the NBA and the Hawks could be at the center of it no matter who they decide to trade.

Buckle up to the rumor mill this summer.