While the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons pulled off the first trade on Friday, the New Orleans Pelicans stole the day with the acquisition of Dejounte Murray. The Pelicans dealt Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, and E.J. Liddell to the Atlanta Hawks, along with two first-rounders for Murray.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said one of the first-round picks the Pelicans are sending to the Hawks is the Lakers 2025 selection. New Orleans had the option of taking the Lakers’ first-round choice this year or next.
Wojnarowski added that the other first-rounder will be a 2027 selection and will be the least favorable of the Milwaukee Bucks and Pelicans’ choices.
NBA Trade Grades: Hawks Deal Dejounte Murray To Pelicans As Atlanta Re-tools
Murray is coming off another fantastic season, though he wasn’t a great fit alongside Trae Young and the Hawks struggled this season The 27-year-old combo guard is one of the better perimeter defenders in the league He posted career-highs in scoring and 3-point shooting this past season.
Murray averaged 22.5 points, 6.4 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals this past season The 6-5 guard canned a personal-best 2.6 treys at a career-high 36.3% clip, shooting 45.9% from the field and 79.4% from the charity stripe He posted 20 double-doubles and one triple-double while scoring in double-figures in 78 of 79 appearances, including 13 30+ contests with four 40-point efforts He begins the four-year, $114.07 million contract extension he signed with Atlanta.
Nance is a nice role player who does his best work around the rim However, the 31-year-old does not block shots and is not a great interior defender.
Nance averaged 5.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in nearly 20 minutes of action over 61 appearances Nance also produced two double-doubles with shooting splits of 57.3/41.5/77.0% He will make $11.2 million in the final year of the deal.
Daniels, the No. 8 pick in 2022, has developed a little slower than expected Still just 21 years old, Daniels’ defense is way ahead of his offense.
Daniels showed little improvement in year two, averaging 5.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.4 steals He produced one double-double this past season while compiling a 44.7/31.1/64.2% He will make $5.7 million this upcoming season and has team options over the next two seasons.
Liddell, the No. 41 pick in 2022, has dealt with injuries throughout his collegiate and pro careers The 23-year-old power forward saw 23 minutes over eight appearances He will make $2.1 million this year and has a team option for 2025-26.
New Orleans Pelicans Trade Grade: B-
Murray is an excellent acquisition for New Orleans, which is in win now mo e. While the Pelicans got the better end of the deal, they have work to do.
The Pelicans are coming off their best season since 2017-18 as they won 49 games and reached the postseason for the second time in the last six years. Murray and Zion Williamson could become one of the top duos in 2024-25 though the question will be who else will be on the team.
Jonas Valanciunas is a free agent. And the Pelicans need to add frontcourt depth.
New Orleans has 11 players under contract with salaries totaling $163.3 million. With the Pelicans exercising Jose Alvarado and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl club options, all the players have fully guaranteed deals.
When2024 first-round pick Yves Missi signs his $3.2 million per year deal, the Pelicans will be just $2.4 million below the luxury tax line with two spots to be filled, per NBA cap expert Yossi Gozlan. Brandon Ingram, who is eligible for an extension, and CJ McCollum are candidates to be traded for a starting big man.
According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, if the Pelicans and Hawks trade is completed as reported, New Orleans will be hard-capped at $178.7 million since they are taking in more than sending out.
2024 second-round draft pick Antonio Reaves, who the Pelicans traded two future second round selections for, is a candidate for one of the final spots on the 15-man roster. If Reaves does not get a standard deal, he is almost guaranteed a two-way contract.
Atlanta Hawks Trade Grade: C-
Atlanta had to do something as the Hawks were in purgatory in the East, winning 36 games this past season. Young and Murray were not good fits as they were just 55-62 when both shared the floor.
Now with the selection of French teenager Zacharie Risacher with the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft and the trade of Murray, it appears to be in rebuild mode.
The Hawks have 13 players under contract with their decision to exercise Garrett Mathews options. The Hawks also chose against tendering Saddiq Bey a qualifying offer thus making him an unrestricted free agent. They are approximately $15 million below the first apron.
According to Yahoo Sports Jake Fischer, Riscacher and Jalen Johnson are the only Hawks who are off limits. However, now that Murray has been traded that list might now include Young.
But back to the Murray trade, the Hawks at least got their two first round picks that they sent out to San Antonio for him. However, the Lakers pick is likely to be out of the lottery this year and could be in the 20s. So, there really is not a lot of value there.
Nance projects to a rotational player. But Daniels may find playing time hard to come by, unless more players are moved. Liddell is an end of bench player, who will likely continue to see more time in the G-League.
