The Atlanta Hawks have a lot to think about this summer, with some of the team's big issues fully exposed in the final moments of their season. The season officially ended with a 116-131 loss in the Hawks' playoff game against the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, the first time they failed to make the playoffs since the 2020 Orlando Bubble.
A video of the Hawks' backcourt partners Trae Young and Dejounte Murray in this game has attracted a lot of attention online, showing Trae Young choosing a very loose behind-the-back pass to Murray when handling the ball in the final seconds of the third quarter, and as a result, the pass route was a little off target, causing Murray to be unable to shoot before the 24-second whistle. When the third quarter ended and the Hawks players walked to the bench, Murray seemed to lose his mind in an instant, raising his arms and shouting to the side to vent his emotions.
Former All-Star guard Murray was traded to the Hawks from the San Antonio Spurs two summers ago, but he didn't fit as perfectly with Trae Young as the Hawks had hoped, all due to both players' habits of having the ball in their hands. As the season progressed, Hawks management finally realized that there was only one person left between the two, and in fact, Murray was almost traded by the Hawks before this year's trade deadline.
With the Hawks now in the most precarious situation of not being able to go up or down, there have been recent rumors that Trae Young could be traded out by the Hawks this summer. The editor believes that both players may not be so easy to trade, because Trae Young's contract does not expire until 2027 and has an average annual salary of up to $46 million, while Murray's contract will last until 2028, with an average annual salary of $28.5 million, which can be said to be super low value for money in terms of their performance this season, especially Trae Young, so I think the Hawks must find a way to give up at least one of the two.