Should The Spurs Trade Dejounte Murray?

He’s a star player on a team that is just a mere shadow of what it used to be and many people are saying that he could lead the team out of the bottom of the Western Conference within the next few years.

Yet, others are saying the Spurs should take their chances on the trade market and send Murray away in order to grab some other talent to help the team continue to rebuild.

So the basic question is this: Should the Spurs trade Murray or should they build their team around him?

He’s Their Only Asset

There is no doubt that the Spurs love what Murray is doing for the team.

While the team is still 12th in the West with a record of 12-18, Murray is a bright spot and has produced some of the best plays of the season.

The truth is that there are a few talented stars on the team: Keldon Johnson is creating 15 a game with 6.5 rebounds, Derrick White is creating 14.1 points with five assists, and Jakob Poeltl is producing 12.2 points with 8.7 rebounds.

However, Murray is the biggest star on the team – and that means he’s the biggest trade chip the Spurs have.

If the Spurs are looking to grab a bigger star on the market, the simple truth is that Murray would have to be part of the trade equation.

It doesn’t matter if they are going for an All-Star or someone lesser-known, Murray is the only target that other teams will want.

It would be a tough pill for San Antonio to swallow but if they want to create any sort of trade, they will need to keep Murray as part of the package.

Murray is the best part of the Spurs – and every other team in the NBA knows that.

They’ve Thought Of It Before

A few months ago, there was talk that the Spurs were in the running to land Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons.

It won’t surprise you to hear that part of the potential trade package was Murray.

Reports said that the Spurs were open to trading Murray along with Lonnie Walker IV in order to land Simmons, who Popovich is apparently fond of.

Of course, all of these rumors were before the season started and before Murray began putting up his incredible numbers.

Still, the fact that the team has even thought of trading him before means they could possibly do it again.

But the best course of action is to not trade him and instead build the team around him.

Murray is coming into his own and is still young and has years and years ahead of promise.

They are far from the top but the Spurs are showing enough promise that they could conceivably land more talent based on that alone.

In fact, some teams would be willing to send in stars for a package that consists of other players on the team.

True, the Spurs would probably have to ship away a lot of players but if they get to keep Murray and build around him, it would be worth it.

Murray is one of the most exciting stars in the league.

The Spurs should remember this and retain him for as long as possible.