Less than a week after the teams inquired about the possibility of a deal for Dejuntai Murray, the value of the deal reached a high point overnight, and the draft night also personally called the core backbone of the welcome rookie to leave San Antonio's beloved city on the eve of the opening of the free market. He is about to be greeted by a young eagle with increasingly plump wings, eager to replicate last year's successful experience and looking forward to breaking through the skyline.
Eagle King's new wings
After three years of immersion, the Hawks, who returned to the playoffs last season, reached the Eastern Conference Finals as the fifth in the East, but this year they fell into the play-off area without too many changes in personnel, and the gap is that the teams gradually master the method of limiting the "Eagle King" Trae Young.
The lineup looks like a five-goal tie, but the Hawks' long-standing problem has always revolved around no one being able to make up for Trae Young's defensive flaws, and when he's wrapped up, there's a lack of a second offensive launch point on the court. That's why in recent years, trade rumours involving defensive backcourts like Ju hollday and Derrick White can all hear the Eagles' name, but they have repeatedly been blocked at the last minute by their main rivals in the same zone, and they don't want to miss it this time.
The actual effect has yet to be verified, but last season's steals king, de Zhangtai Murray, who was second only to MVP Nikola Jokic in terms of number of major three yuan, can provide a high-quality defense close to the defensive team of the year, ensure that Trae Young has another response point on the court when he is clipped, and even replicate the Way the Warriors use Curry, with Dezhangtai Murray holding the ball to break through, and Trae Young plays the no-ball shooter to maximize the offensive firepower. Coupled with the blocking and dismantling of Clint Capela and Oneka Okongu, the Hawks tactical board suddenly has many more possibilities because of the addition of DeJuntai Murray.
To sum up, the 25-year-old Dezhangtai Murray is definitely the most suitable backcourt partner for Trae Young in the current market, both in terms of functionality and development timeline.
In terms of chips, Danilo Gallinari's non-guarantee contract is only used to match salaries, and it is uncertain whether the Hawks have reached an agreement with him to postpone the guarantee date, if it is fully guaranteed, the Spurs will have to be forced to eat 21.45 million salary, and the expensive contract will be difficult to copy last season's mid-season Thaddeus Young's deal, but a subtraction from the deal. The first-round pick from the Hornets was acquired from the Knicks in mid-season through trade with Cam Redish and was closely protected for neither the value nor the initial transaction cost.
So strictly speaking, whether the Hawks are willing to give up two unprotected first-round picks and one first-round pick swap after 2025 is the real main axis of the deal.
In other words, the Spurs and the Hawks are in a betting position, betting on whether the addition of Dezhangtai Murray can help the Hawks break through the existing ceiling, and whether de Zhangtai Murray's contract that expires in two years will affect the Hawks' further layout.
From the perspective of contract renewal, the current salary of the Hawks in the 2024-25 season is about 106 million, if you consider the departure of John Collins, DeAndre Hunt and Oneka Okongu to renew the contract, there is a chance to increase by up to 20 million, plus the Hawks 2022-24 season first round signing is still in hand, can use rookie contracts or deals to continue to replenish new blood, even if the use of five years of 200 million and Dejuntai Murray maximum salary renewal will not cause salary pressure.
What's more, the amount of the NBA's next broadcast contract starting in 2025 is expected to triple, and the salary cap of each team is expected to be expanded to 171 million from the beginning of the 2025-26 season, when the salary space occupied by the 200 million stars is roughly equivalent to the current high-quality starters. At this stage, de Zhangtai Murray, whose contract is already very cost-effective, has the opportunity to sign another cost-effective contract. Therefore, the renewal of Dezhangtai Murray is the icing on the cake of the deal.
Will the Hawks get better by joining Dejunta Murray? The answer is undoubtedly yes. But is it good enough to reach the championship? This is something that everyone is curious about. Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk, who has already bet on all the draft picks, has to think about how to break the team's strength into pieces the following summer, and if only stopping here is obviously not enough to qualify from the East.
A new journey into the unknown
Leaving aside the emotional side, it's hard not to say that it's a good deal.
A brief comparison of the parcels that Ju Holliday exchanged for that year:
The 2020 first round from the Pacers was a 24th pick, comparable to the value of the 2023 Hornets protected first-round pick; The Bucks are more competitive at this stage, but the Eagles core as a whole is younger, and the value of the other two unprotected first-round picks is basically the same, and under the premise of the same value, the Spurs as a whole have one less first-round signing swap.
In terms of players, Hill played the same matching salary role in this deal as Danilo Gallinari, but Bledsoe still had a three-year contract of more than 54 million at the time, which was a significant premium for players who had become the seventh and eighth players in the rotation, which seriously compressed the team's subsequent operating space, even if there was one more first-round signing swap, it was difficult to make up, so the Spurs as a whole had a slight advantage in the offer.
In fact, before Jud Horday, it was hard to imagine that such a defensive point guard could exchange so many first-round signing assets in one go. At that time, the reason why the Bucks were willing to take risks and invest, in addition to getting rid of Bledsoe's bad contract, was based on the Fact that the Bucks management believed that the playoffs in the East for two consecutive years were missing a championship puzzle like Juju Holliday. If today's trading partner is the Hawks who have to pass the playoffs to step on the playoff stage, is there still such a high value?
Rather than saying that Dezhangtai Murray has the value of three first-round picks, it is more accurate to say that Juju Holliday's successful case has attracted market attention, coupled with the price comparison effect produced by the pursuit of first-round picks by rival Knicks in the same region, coupled with the precedent of being blocked in the past, the Eagles have no longer missed the pressure, and various days, locations, people and accidents have raised the value of Dezhangtai Murray to the highest point.
Compared with the renewal issue, the draft year, the development space of the newcomer... For the Spurs, the main reason for the trade is to miss this opportunity, and may not wait for the time when Dezhangtai Murray is worth so much.
In terms of combat strength, the Spurs' strength will inevitably decline after Dezhangtai Murray, but this may be an opportunity for another team to adjust its overall playing style. Due to the lack of no-ball attack, the team has not only given DeJuntai Murray a lot of ball power in the past season, but even designed a variety of blocking tactics to create scoring opportunities for him. Behind last season's eye-catching data, in addition to the growth and outbreak of the players themselves, the tactical packaging of the coaching team is also indispensable.
In contrast to mid-season trades derrick White, Lonnie Walker, Kelden Johnson and Devin Vassell to deliver impressive results in the second half of the season, de Chantai Murray's departure to give the ball out is the moment when these young players show their cap and the opportunity to really let them grow. This group of seedlings that have been honing their ballless consciousness for a long time, if they master the ball playing style, so that the team is not limited to single-player tactics, the tactical design of the whole team will be more abundant.
Of course, it has to be talked about 2023, the year of the draft, Victor Wimban Yama, who has become a recognized champion since before this year's draft, is naturally the primary target coveted by various scouts, and Scott Henderson, Nick Smith and Darwick Whitehead are also seen as having the potential to become the core of the team, and it is also the backbone that spurs need to find most urgently at this stage.
It is worth mentioning that after this transaction, the Spurs will hold 10 first-round picks in the next six years, and if the desired target appears at the draft, it is not impossible to complete the transaction directly like last year's Rockets and this year's Thunder smashing multiple first-round picks.
A few months ago, Popovich was asked about his views on "swinging": "I think if players don't play at their best, it will hurt them. Frankly, I had no idea how to walk into the dressing room and say, "Well, we can't play what we're supposed to be." Or hint that they're screwed up. ”
And now sending away Dezhangtai Murray means that the Spurs have officially bid farewell to the dilemma of not being able to survive and re-form a new army based on talent. It also sends a clear message to other teams that are actively asking for the championship puzzle in the price team: "As long as the chips are good enough, no one is not for sale." "The deal may even be just the first domino that the team has pushed down. Even if this group of baby soldiers in the formation is extremely talented, this situation is not bad and difficult.
As for this journey full of unknowns at the end of the spurs is the brilliant dawn of the morning light or the abyss of eternal doom, it can only be proved by time.
Take the lead! After the uprising?
Unlike other active Spurs players, Dezhangtai Murray's importance to the Spurs is more symbolic than just combat strength.
As the last participant in the GDP era, accompanying this team to experience the afterglow of power, watching the ugliness of the stars, and then to the helplessness of struggling to fight against reality and rebuilding, but all this does not prevent him from being a wave of doubts, from the rookie who could not even pass the half, through the devastation of cruciate ligament injuries, and finally transformed into an all-star.
He is The Hand-picked successor of Tony Parker, the latest self-developed All-Star in the squad, the benchmark that young players want to imitate when they enter the team, the senior who took the initiative to call after the draft to welcome rookies to join, the big brother who visited the development league on the day of the military leave, the team leader, the first player to come forward to hug popovich on record night...
For proponents, it's a deal that understands but doesn't like.
Not only because of de Chantai Murray's strength, but also because of the footprints he left in the city.
As a thriving power, it is difficult to find a more competent leader and a more qualified bridge than Dezhangtai Murray.
Just like the scene when Parker handed over the torch, how good the "enlightenment" effect of Dejuntai Murray, who completed the "succession" task, was left to this group of young people to prove!
The rest... Bless Dezhangtai Murray to take the blessings of all Spurs fans and fly wider into the sky.