Dejounte Murray Would be a “Dream” Trade for the Knicks

Dejounte Murray be a potential trade target for the New York Knicks. (Photo via PoundingTheRock)

With the NBA trade deadline looming, a lot of people are talking about whether the San Antonio Spurs might decide to trade Dejounte Murray to the New York Knicks. Let’s take a closer look at this trade possibility and how realistic it is.

What Dejounte Murray Could Bring to the Knicks

First of all, where did the conversation about Murray and the Knicks begin? The answer is this post in the Bleacher Report. In it, Greg Swartz writes, “The Knicks have to do something at the trade deadline, or this team could miss the play-in tournament and playoffs altogether. Stabilizing the point guard position would be a start, with Murray serving as the perfect floor general for this squad.” The Knicks have been struggling with this point guard issue for a long time now. Murray could be just what they need to turn things around.

How Likely is it for San Antonio to Part Ways With Murray?

There is no denying that Murray could be an ideal fit for the Knicks. But the reality is that this possibility looks good on paper, but is unlikely to pan out in reality. Indeed, Swartz himself refers to Murray as a “dream” target, naming Goran Dragic of the Toronto Raptors as a more realistic trade possibility.

With his roughly 20 point average per game, Murray is a solid asset to the Spurs, so San Antonio is not motivated to give him up easily. He is also up for the NBA Most Improved Player Award.

Eli Becht at Heavy writes that San Antonio “would have to be completely blown away by an offer from the Knicks, and that’s perhaps a things that they wouldn’t be able to do.”

In fact, Murray has been one of the most consistent players on the team this past season. Trading him away would have serious ramifications. Not only would the Spurs lose Murray’s individual talent, but the entire team core would weaken.

Further investigation into this trade discussion turns up a recent tweet that circulated pretty widely from @TheNBA Central. It quotes Brian Windhorst of ESPN as saying, “There’s been some chatter in the league about whether the Spurs would be willing to trade him. Maybe not during the season but next summer.”

It seems likely this tweet and the quote it references have done a lot to add fuel to the rumor mill. But when you think about it, Windhorst’s statement is very vague. There is little to read into it.

The Knicks Making a “Dream Trade” for Dejounte Murray is a Long Shot

What can we conclude from all this? Mostly, we can say that Dejounte Murray is likely to be in increasingly high demand as he continues to evolve and impress. The Knicks would probably be more than happy to have him. The same could be said for plenty of other teams. But that in no way, shape or form suggests that the Spurs do not fully realize and appreciate Murray’s value.

Given the Spurs’ approach of working from season to season on building up their core, it does not make sense to abandon what is arguably the strongest part of that core now. So, we think that unless an offer comes in that is simply too high to turn down, Murray is going to stay right where he is at.