After the offseason, a lot of trades around the star are inevitable, and in addition to the Knicks using five first-rounders plus Bojan Bogdanovic to trade Mikal Bridges, today there is another "big" - the Hawks and Pelicans completed a trade around star point guard Dejounte Murray, the Hawks sent Murray to New Orleans, and the Pelicans are packing Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, the 2025 first-round pick from the Lakers, The lower first-round pick among the Pelicans and Bucks in 2027 goes to the Hawks. As the whistleblower, WOJ also said: "In the 2023-2024 season, the Pelicans have a 0-24 record when they trailed into the fourth quarter, and 2-14 in key moments. They believe Murray is a player who can influence the game in key moments. They remain committed to retaining a core lineup that includes Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram. ”
At this year's draft draw, the Eagles, who should only have the picks at the end of the lottery according to the odds, were pleasantly surprised to win the top pick, which made many people speculate whether this means that one of the Eagles' stars will leave, and the league uses this top pick as compensation? After all, in 2019, this was the case - the so-called lotto draws, some of which were not fair and just, but more of the alliance's macro control. At that time, more fans thought that Trae Young was traded away in the end, but in the end, we saw that it was Murray who was traded. The Hawks naturally want to adjust the incompatible backcourt structure of Murray and Trae Young and strive for more assets, and for the Pelicans, they traded Murray to their own team, which is naturally a big deal.
First of all, the Pelicans have been lacking a better point guard to help the team take the team. In the past few years, the Pelicans have actually lacked a good point guard to help the team revitalize the offense and defense, and they even had to let McCollum and Ingram participate more in the playmaking role in the playoffs, but friends who are familiar with them know that they have been positioned as scorers from the beginning, and now the team has an excellent point guard like Murray, and his performance on the defensive end is also quite commendable, which can be said to be equivalent to ushering in the third giant for the team. In addition, Murray is not bad on the offensive end, he has averaged more than 20 points per game in the past three seasons, and it can be said that his arrival directly solves the Pelicans' lack of a good No. 1 position, the backcourt defense needs to be strengthened, and the increase in firepower output points can be described as killing three birds with one stone.
But in exchange for Murray, the Pelicans also paid a heavy price - they traded away two first-round picks, and in 2027, the one behind them and the Bucks is three years later, maybe too far away, but the Lakers' draft pick they can get, and combined with the Lakers' situation in recent years, this draft pick is likely to be in the 15-20 position if nothing else, and there is even a certain probability that it will be at the end of the lottery, so it's a pity to send it away as an additive. In addition, the trade away Nance Jr. also deprived the team of a barrier on the inside, especially if it was combined with the premise that center Valanciunas should choose to move away. However, as the saying goes, "reluctant children can't trap wolves", if there is no such bargaining chip, Murray will not join, it depends on whether they can have a good chemistry in the future.
Since Anthony Davis was traded away in 2019, the Pelicans got the first pick and selected the Fat Tiger, the team has been trying to make a name for itself, but it has not been able to make a difference. Willie Green will usher in his fourth season in charge of the Pelicans, his best result in the past was only the first round, wandering in the play-offs is the norm, and Ingram is also deep in the vortex of departure, as for the fat tiger has not played a playoff game so far, McCollum will also enter the 34-year-old "advanced age", plus the team's general manager, shooting coach went to the subway, and the management was also hollowed out by more than half, this time in exchange for Murray, it was a big gamble for them, as for what will happen in the end, no one knows, But one thing is for sure, there is really not much time left for the Pelicans, and now the lineup is the deepest, but once it is still the same, what will be faced, you can imagine.