New mock trade sends Dejounte Murray + No. 1 pick to Detroit for pair of former lottery picks and No. 5 pick

Who’s ready for more simulated trades?

There will be a relentless amount of mock trades in the coming weeks as Atlanta goes through the draft process. Because they won the draft lottery and got the No. 1 pick, there will be a lot more interest than if Atlanta had been at No. 10 like they were as well.

There are going to be a lot of rumors surrounding Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, as the duo appears to be headed for a split, although who gets traded is still up for debate. Could the Hawks trade one of them and rebuild around the other + the No. 1 pick? Could they trade a guard and reduce the draft to acquire more draft capital for the future? Everything appears to be on the table for Atlanta, including staying at No. 1 and picking the player they like the most.

Dan Favale of Bleacher Report had an interesting trade proposition that sees Atlanta move Murray and the No. 1 pick to Detroit for a pair of former lottery picks and the No. 5 pick.

The exchange

Atlanta Hawks receive: Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, pick #5

The Detroit Pistons receive: Dejounte Murray, No. 1 pick

Why the Hawks are doing it

“This presents itself as a soft reset for Atlanta. It would break up the Murray-Trae Young backcourt – which seems like a fait accompli at this point – and move the Hawks down four spots to end up with the final three picks No. 5.

This could suggest the Hawks are headed for a full-scale rebuild. But it is more of a reorientation.

Thompson would arrive in Atlanta as a defensive monster, both disruptive and deliberate. His shooting is nonexistent — and his rookie season ended prematurely due to a blood clot — but the Hawks could cobble together enough scoring as long as Trae Young is still running the show.

Ivey is not someone the Hawks could count on deploying alongside other ball-dominant guards. He does not currently have the shooting stroke required to establish himself in this context. But maybe he looks better outside the cramped confines of Detroit’s offense (and head coach Monty Williams’ doghouse). Failing that, Atlanta could look to capitalize on the remaining value it has in a subsequent trade.

Drafting someone at No. 5 who promises to make an instant impact is a tall order, and neither Thompson nor Ivey are particularly committed to their careers. This move would require some patience on Atlanta’s part. But he should have some interesting wings to choose from at No. 5, and most importantly, he shouldn’t be afraid to take his time.

Resets, no matter how gentle, don’t always materialize overnight. This package would give the Hawks a chance to overhaul the lineup and long-term prospects of the supporting cast around Young. And if they intend to move it as well and start over completely, that return would bring back enough development benefits to offset the equity they’ll send to San Antonio from 2025 to 2027.

Why do pistons do it

Detroit will look to improve significantly next season regardless of who runs the front office. Five straight years of winning 23 games or less is kind of irritating for an organization. Between spending large sums of money on Monty Williams, demoting front office czar Troy Weaver, and entering the fourth year of the Cade Cunningham era, the Pistons are starting to feel the weight of their extended (albeit somewhat without goal) in the doldrums.

Armed with potentially more than $60 million in cap space, Detroit’s inevitable overhaul could play out primarily in free agency or via trades that hold on to established performers, perhaps to the detriment of its young core. This exchange follows that line of thinking, without too urgently accelerating the timeline.

Sending Thompson would be a risk. Even without a jump shot, he injects All-NBA defense and some tertiary driving and ball movement. But Murray is a demonstrative spacing and floor improvement over everything the Pistons already have in place, and he’s about to launch one of the league’s most team-friendly extensions (four years, 114 .1 million dollars).

Meanwhile, grabbing the No. 1 pick would allow Detroit to consider a possible Alex Sarr-Jalen Duren duo or target another wing that it believes won’t be available at No. 5. This agreement would lose its luster on the Pistons side. if they don’t think Sarr spreads the floor enough to preserve spacing next to another big, but Duren isn’t good enough to dictate how they build around Cunningham. If they believe in Sarr’s potential — or if they’re very high on Zaccharie Risacher — that’s at least a conversation.

Dropping Ivey over Thompson would be tough to stomach. But the Pistons need to be realistic about his trade value. That’s probably not exorbitant, and it could only get worse unless they tailor the roster better to his strengths on the ball.

Burning a lot of cap space on this package shouldn’t bother Detroit either. Murray is probably much better than anyone the Pistons can reasonably sign, and this deal has them agreeing to an additional salary of less than $15 million, leaving them plenty of wiggle room for free agency and other trades.

It’s not a job I’m a fan of. I think the Hawks could get a lot more for Murray than Thompson or Ivey, who are both excellent players, but aren’t centerpieces of a deal. Thompson would make a lot of sense from a defensive standpoint and will be one of Atlanta’s main focuses this offseason. If he develops a jump shot, he has All-NBA potential. Ivey hasn’t lived up to his draft status, but it’s fair to wonder if he got a fair deal in Detroit. He could start or come off the bench for Atlanta.

If the Hawks really like Alex Sarr, the projected No. 1 pick at the moment, they shouldn’t move down to No. 5 because it’s very unlikely he’ll be there. If they go down to five, players like Donovan Clingan, Matas Buzelis, Ron Holland and Zaccharie Risacher could be targets. Just yesterday, Hawks head coach Quin Snyder, general manager Landry Fields and assistant general manager Kyle Korver were there to check on Risacher.

Although most of the attention will be on Sarr, it would be malpractice on the part of the Hawks not to consider all of the options available to them. This choice is essential for their future and they must make this selection carefully. I also think it’s possible if they like Risacher enough, they could trade for him while also acquiring additional draft capital.

Risacher has the widest range of players in this draft, which means I saw him projected closer to the top, but I also saw him toward the 7-10 range. He is a talented wing who would bring versatility and athleticism to the position and fill many of the Hawks’ needs. The question with him is on the offensive side, in particular his consistency. This is another high-risk proposition for the Hawks if they take him, but his upside and potential are clearly there.

This week at the NBA Draft Combine, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony was talking about the Hawks and what they could do with the No. 1 pick and he suggested there could be a wide cast with this pick and suggested other players who could be in the NBA Draft Combine. mix with the pickaxe:

“The Atlanta Hawks have a long process ahead of them that includes interviews, physicals, workouts, background checks, and I think they’re going to cast a wide net here with Alex Sarr, Zaccharie Risacher, Reed Sheppard, Rob Dillingham and Donovan Clingan I think it’s going to be quite a process for them to figure out who they’re going to take.”

I fully expect Atlanta to qualify and look at all possible outcomes with the No. 1 pick, although I think Sarr should still be considered the favorite. I know Givony mentioned Dillingham, but he’s one of the few players at the top of this draft that I don’t think the Hawks will take, even if they decide to trade Trae Young. Anything can happen, but I think the likelihood of the Hawks taking Dillingham is low. Matas Buzelis, a player who was not mentioned by Givony, is a player who is more likely to be considered for the No. 1 pick than Dillingham.

There are six weeks left until the 2024 NBA Draft and it will be a crucial time for the Hawks. Even if they didn’t get the No. 1 pick, this was going to be a huge offseason in Atlanta. This just adds another layer and the Hawks front office and decision makers need to make the right decisions to prepare this franchise for the future.