Now that the Los Angeles Lakers have finally hired JJ Redick to be their head coach, they can soon move on to the business of upgrading their roster.
Their current roster was good enough to win them 47 games and 23 of their last 33 this season. But it isn’t a championship-caliber one, and as long as LeBron James sticks around, it will be “championship or bust” for the Purple and Gold.
The team did make a run at Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray prior to the trade deadline, but those talks hit a roadblock. NBA insider Shams Charania believes they will once again have talks about acquiring the former All-Star (h/t Lakers Daily).
"The pressure is on the Lakers front office to make changes to this roster..
They have to be aggressive and I think Dejounte Murray will come up in trade conversations"@ShamsCharania #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/xegZkMdKzu
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) June 21, 2024
Murray is coming off arguably his best statistical season ever. He averaged a career-high 22.5 points a game while improving his 3-point accuracy to 36.3%. He played very well late in the year when Trae Young was out with an injury and almost single-handedly kept Atlanta afloat, allowing it to reach the play-in tournament.
He has the type of speed, quickness and defensive ability the Lakers both need and want in a lead guard. In addition, he has the ability to facilitate and hit the open man, which would allow them to preserve LeBron James.
Reportedly, some of Redick’s goals are to reduce James’ ballhandling duties, utilize him off the ball more and keep him fresh for the playoffs.
Murray will make $25.5 million next season, which would make him a less expensive target than Young or Donovan Mitchell, two other stars L.A. has been rumored to have interest in.