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The Atlanta Hawks 2021-22 campaign was a massive letdown. After an unexpected run to the Eastern Conference Finals the season before, many thought Atlanta would be primed to build off their deep playoff run. Instead, they stood pat for most of the 2021 NBA offseason, and ended up watching the rest of the league improve while they regressed back to the mean.
Atlanta's front office was determined to not let that be the case again this offseason, and they made it known they were willing to be aggressive when it came to making moves this time around. The Hawks have a solid young core, led by star point guard Trae Young, and there's clearly more of an incentive to build a winner around him now than there was last offseason.
That led to the Hawks pulling off one of the biggest trades of the 2022 NBA offseason so far in a deal that makes them an instant playoff contender in a crowded Eastern Conference. It will easily go down as their best move this offseason, and it might be one of the best moves made by any team in the NBA since the conclusion of the 2022 NBA Finals.
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Atlanta Hawks best offseason move: trading for Dejounte Murray
The Hawks knew they had a lot of work to do this offseason. Their young core proved to be wildly inconsistent for much of the 2021-22 season, which meant that Young got stuck carrying the offensive burden on his own for long stretches of the season. They also were one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA last season, and fixing that was arguably the biggest item on their to-do list.
Enter Dejounte Murray, one of the premier all-around players in the NBA. Murray had a breakout campaign for the San Antonio Spurs last season in which he scored 21.1 points per game, dished out 9.2 assists per game, and hauled in 8.3 rebounds per game. Murray became a triple-double threat on a nightly basis, and despite a complete lack of talent around him on San Antonio, he managed to drag the Spurs to the Play-In Tournament as the number ten seed.
The Hawks sent first round picks in 2023, 2025, and 2027 to San Antonio, plus the rights to swap first round picks in 2026, as well as Danilo Gallinari, who was waived by the Spurs shortly after. In return, Atlanta got Murray and Jock Landale, who figures to be an end of the bench option at best. Seems like a lot, but Murray is undoubtedly worth the haul.
In just one move, the Hawks addressed several of their most pressing needs this offseason. Starting on offense, Murray is the perfect complement to Young. Young is a volume shooter who is at his best when he knocks down a barrage of long-range threes.
Murray on the other hand makes his money inside the arc. He's a fantastic finisher at the rim, and also can hit on many of his mid-range jumpers. His three point shooting needs work (he shot just 32.7 percent on threes last season), but Atlanta has enough floor spacing already, so it shouldn't be an issue.
With both Young and Murray on the court, the Hawks not only have two fantastic scorers, but they have two guys who can initiate offense in a half court setting and hit their open teammates. When defenses applied pressure on Young last season, Atlanta was in trouble because they didn't have another natural point guard who could take the burden off him. The Hawks offense relied heavily on Young being able to create for himself and others; when he couldn't, they struggled mightily.
Murray takes the burden off Young there in a big way. Opposing defenders are going to have to pick their poison with Young and Murray, as each has their own method of creating offense. Just having Murray on the court should help the Hawks offense open up and reach the same heights they did during their 2021 playoff run.
Murray is also one of the best defensive guards in the game. He led the league with an average of two steals per game, and is a switchable defender who can hold his own against pretty much anyone he finds himself on. Murray's defensive capabilities will be a welcome sight on a Hawks team that got torched on defense for most of the 2021-22 season.
Atlanta's addition of Dejounte Murray is easily their best move of the offseason. Potentially unloading four first rounders is steep, but compared to some of the other blockbuster deals we have seen this offseason (e.g. Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves) this deal should be considered a steal. Murray is exactly what the Hawks are looking for on both offense and defense, and they have secured their backcourt of the future in the process, making them a very dangerous team out of the East for the next few years.
