Ex-NBA Star Blames Trae Young For Hawks Locker Room Rift, Denounces Dejounte Murray’s Pelicans Trade: “Disappointed”

When the Hawks made a deal with Spurs back in 2022 to acquire Dejounte Murray, many believed his pairing with Trae Young would take over the league. However, just two seasons later, Murray is already busy packing his bags, as he’s been traded to the Pelicans. But why did the All-Star caliber backcourt of Murray and Trae fail? Well, NBA legend Eddie Johnson hints it could partially be Young’s fault as there were rumors about him having a salty relationship with Dejounte, which might have led to their breaking up.

Addressing the Murray trade on the SiriusXM radio show, Eddie did not seem too happy with what the Hawks got in return for sending Dejounte to NOLA. “I’m disappointed.” Atlanta had given up Danilo Gallinari and 4 future draft picks to get their hands on the All-Star. But this time around, they could only bargain for Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, and 2 future first-rounders. Johnson believes Murray is worth a lot more. “This dude is a possible All-Star every year… He can put up crazy numbers and to not be able to get more for him is amazing.”

Then, the legend expressed his angst about the Murray-Trae duo not reaching its maximum potential, who he thought could have been the best backcourt and also “a problem” for the rest of the Easter Conference. Moreover, when Murray came to Atlanta, it was well known that he was great friends with Trae, and people expected great chemistry between them on the court.

But soon rumors began of tensions in the locker room as it was believed that their friendship had taken a hit while playing together. “Trae Young, maybe can do that to you,” he said, blaming the superstar guard. Maybe this was the reason why the duo never seemed to work together and why the Hawks were forced to let go of an All-Star caliber player for a pretty low price.

While many still believe that the relationship with Trae could have been the reason for Murray’s departure, the superstar duo claimed that was not the case. During an April episode of From the Point podcast, Trae invited Murray as a guest to put an end to all the rumors. “I think our relationship is good,” Trae said, claiming that things obviously could be better if their team was winning more.

Trae Young and Dejounte Murray denied the locker room rumors

Notably, the Hawks won only 36 games this season and ended up as the tenth seed. However, Trae believes that his friendship with Murray is still intact and their bond is deeper than basketball and will always stay that way.

Meanwhile, Murray also agreed with his teammate’s sentiment and claimed that all the rumors of any locker room tensions were all because of the narrative by the people on the internet. “We great, we communicate. You know, it’s authentic,” he added. Obviously, he also acknowledged that staying or getting traded is not in their hands and it depends on what the front office decides.

And while they continue to stay friends, there was definitely a fit problem with Trae and Murray. Although they each had decent individual seasons averaging over twenty points, they weren’t able to translate them into victories. So, it was almost certain that one of them would be traded this summer. And the axe happened to fall on Dejounte Murray.

Before you go, do not forget to check out what Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato has to say about the alleged Shaq and Kobe Lakers beef. Keep checking this space for more such updates.