Los Angeles Lakers fans badly want their team to make a trade, and Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray is the man many of them seem to want. The team has had talks with Atlanta regarding him, but those talks have hit an impasse, reportedly because Atlanta doesn’t want D’Angelo Russell in return.
However, Russell has been on a heater since going back into L.A.’s starting lineup. In fact, his excellent play of late has reportedly made the team think twice about trading him.
In fact, NBA reporter Marc Stein wrote that Russell’s strong play has resulted in the Lakers dialing back their pursuit of Murray.
"The Lakers were initially said to be willing to package Russell with a first-round pick in 2029 and a first-round pick swap in exchange for Murray — with Austin Reaves completely off limits. That pursuit appears to have been dialed back some with Russell playing so well."
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— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) January 28, 2024
In his last eight games, Russell has put up 27.5 points and 6.4 assists a game while shooting 52.3% from the field and 54.2% from 3-point range. Not coincidentally, the Lakers have won five of their last seven contests.