With the Atlanta Hawks opting to stay pat ahead of the 2024 NBA Trade Deadline, speculation has begun running rampant about what their plans could be during the offseason. It feels like it is a matter of when, not if the Hawks make a headlining grabbing trade with one of their guards.
Ahead of the deadline, it was Dejounte Murray who was involved in the most NBA rumors on the team. But, there is a chance the team opts to keep Murray long-term and looks to trade All-Star point guard Trae Young.
If that is the route that Atlanta opts to take, expect there to be plenty of suitors. Two teams have emerged as potential landing spots according to NBA insider Marc Stein; the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers.
“San Antonio tops the perceived list. The Spurs have circulated for months among prominent league observers as a viable destination for Young’s offensive gifts. In Victor Wembanyama, they also seemingly possess precisely the sort of long and rangy defensive anchor who could mitigate Young’s defensive deficiencies. It is likewise believed in some corners of the league that Young would have interest in South Texas as a destination if he were forced to leave Atlanta,” wrote Stein.
The Spurs would be an interesting trade partner for the Hawks. A bulk of the negotiations, when it comes to draft capital, would revolve around the Atlanta first-round picks that San Antonio owns from the Murray blockbuster in the 2022 offseason.
Getting those selections back, especially if they are heading into a bit of a rebuild, would be important for Atlanta. For San Antonio, they would land a lead guard capable of running circles around opponents with Victor Wembanyama in a two-man game.
Overcoming Young’s defensive deficiencies is certainly not an easy task. The Hawks have been unable to do it to this point, but Wembanyama is one player who could single-handedly compensate for him. Another player who would be close to accomplishing that is the Lakers’ big man, Anthony Davis.
“The Los Angeles Lakers could wind up on there, too. They have an All-NBA defensive anchor of their own in Anthony Davis and, after declining to make a major move at the deadline, are poised to have three first-round picks at their trade disposal starting on draft night (2029 and 2031 in addition to 2024 or 2025 depending on how New Orleans decides to settle the last obligation remaining from the original AD trade) to make a splashy move on June 26 or thereafter,” wrote Stein.
A big reason the Lakers didn’t make a trade ahead of the 2024 NBA Trade Deadline was that they didn’t think a needle-moving transaction was available. They had only one first-round draft pick at their disposal; in the offseason, they could have three to build a trade package with.
That kind of value will draw the attention of other franchises. It would unlock a potential blockbuster deal for the Lakers to make whether LeBron James remains in the fold or not. Their outlook certainly is better with James in the fold, but if he does leave, Los Angeles at least has the means to make an upgrade and remain competitive in the Western Conference.
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