The San Antonio Spurs traded Dejounte Murray to the Atlanta Hawks this past year for Danilo Gallinari, three first rounders and a draft swap.
It was a massive haul for a supremely talented player, that much everyone could agree on.
What made the move a little harder to swallow, however, was that Murray is only 26 years old and was once viewed as a potential franchise player for the Spurs.
Recently, Murray opened up quite honestly regarding his feelings on the Spurs trading him.
“I wouldn’t say I wanted out,” Murray told NBA insider Marc J. Spears. “I wanted to be there my whole career. I love San Antonio.”
Essentially, the way Murray tells it, he and Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich reached an understanding regarding his long-term viability with the Spurs.
“Obviously, there was some little trade rumors and stuff, but it didn’t get real to me and Pop. Pop would see stuff, trade interest in such and such or blah-blah or Spurs looking to trade this guy. Pop don’t get into that, no.
“He wanted to hear it from me. ‘Would you want to be able to go play on a bigger stage? Do you want to stay, or you want to go?’ But he also gave his opinion on if I stay, he doesn’t want me to waste my talent, waste years of not making the playoffs. So, it really came down to that.”
Murray always keeps it real. Whether he is opening up about his relationship with Kawhi Leonard or offering up a harsh message regarding former teammate Tony Parker – he is nothing if not honest.
The photos speak for themselves. https://t.co/xrazdX5WuI
— Game 7 (@game7__) February 1, 2023
In that spirit, if he is saying this about his Spurs exit, you know he means it.
Will the Spurs one day rue letting Murray walk when he has so much career left to play? Time will tell.
Related: Olivia Dunne’s Latest Video Gets Her TikTok Page Removed
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
