Dizonte Murray, recruited by the owner’s son, transfer rumors after one season

Dezonte Murray of the Atlanta Hawks is embroiled in transfer rumors again after one season.

According to the Atlanta local media on the 12th (Korean time), “Atlanta may trade Murray because of the burden of the luxury tax. Atlanta’s salary cap for next season is $170 million. This exceeds the luxury tax, and if the price is appropriate, That’s why I was able to trade Murray.”토토사이트

Murray was traded from the San Antonio Spurs to Atlanta before this season. San Antonio, which announced a rebuilding, sent Murray, who was in his prime, to receive a draft nomination right, and Atlanta got a star player to assist Trae Young.

Murray, who has good defense, was expected to be a good partner for Young, who is weak on defense. In addition, Murray’s offensive power, which exploded last season, was expected to greatly reduce Young’s burden. However, the synergy between Young and Murray was not great.

Both Murray and Young are used to holding the ball and attacking. The biggest reason Murray was selected as an All-Star last season was because he took the ball and led the offense. Young has one of the longest ball possessions in the NBA. Therefore, if two players played together, one player could not catch the ball on the court. 

Murray’s performance this season averaged 20.5 points, 6.1 assists and 5.3 rebounds, and the record itself did not change much compared to last season. However, coexistence with the Spirit was a clear failure.

The team performance was also not good. Atlanta managed to qualify for the play-in tournament by finishing 8th in the Eastern Conference with a record of 41-41 during the regular season. When Murray was acquired, Atlanta’s expectations must have been much higher.

For this reason, the rumors of the Murray trade in Atlanta make sense. It was Nick Ressler, the son of owner Tony Ressler, who pushed for Murray’s recruitment. Nick Ressler began his involvement with Atlanta’s team operations in 2020. There was also news that Atlanta’s other executives opposed the signing of Murray, but with Nick Ressler’s strong will, the signing of Murray was made.

Can this kind of Murray be sent back as a trade after one season? It is true that I have doubts. Atlanta clearly needs a team change. It is questionable whether Murray can be the beginning of change.