Trae Young & Dejounte Murray Quash Rift Rumors as Ex-All-Star Bids Emotional Farewell to Atlanta After Pelicans Trade

The Atlanta Hawks finally pulled the trigger. With the duo of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray not finding any success in the last two seasons, many expected the Hawks to part ways with at least one of them this summer. And the axe fell on Murray as he got sent to the Pelicans in a blockbuster trade. With rumors about a locker room rift between the two stars, many also blamed that as the reason to why the duo never worked. But Murray and Young silenced all the critics by publicly quashing their rumored beef after an emotional farewell message from the former All-Star.

Finally soaking in the news of his departure from Atlanta, Murray compiled his two-year journey with the Hawks in an Instagram post, sharing multiple nostalgic images with teammates along with a heartfelt message, “ATLANTA…🖤 Thank You 🙏🏽 For Welcoming Me And My Family And Making Us Feel Like We Was At Home. To My Brothers Over The Past 2 Years In ATL I Appreciate You Guys And Love You Guys Forever. To The Staff That I Built Relationships With I Thank All Of You. I Can’t Forget About All The Fans From When I Was Out With Family To Playing Games At State Farm Arena. The Love With The Fans Was So Dope And Just The Ones That Appreciated What I Stand For As A Man And Always Told Me Thank You For Not Really Missing Games And Just Competing Every Time I Stepped On The Floor!!! 💯 Thank You ATL🖤 I FW Yall 4L…. ✌🏽”

Obviously, the emotional message struck a chord in his former running mate Trae Young’s heart as he shared the post on his IG story saying, “Know what it is 5.” And to top it all off, Trae put the picture with Dejounte that they took together during their SLAM photoshoot as the top picture on his story. Although Murray didn’t specifically mention Trae in his farewell post, he was appreciative of all the teammates he had in Atlanta in the last two years. Now that Trae has also acknowledged his message, it is safe to say that their rumored rift might not have been real after all.

The Trae Young Dilemma

With Murray bidding farewell to the franchise he called home for the last two years, the Hawks now have to decide what they want to do with Trae. In exchange for Murray, the Hawks received some major assets to work with, including Dyson Daniels, E.J. Liddell, Larry Nance Jr., Cody Zeller, and multiple future draft picks. But now, they have to decide if they want to continue building their future around Trae Young or go in a completely different direction.

Playing with Trae as their primary option for the last six years, the farthest they have gone are the Conference Finals, that too only once. So, it might be time to cash in while they can by trading Young and starting fresh with a rebuild. However, it might be easier said than done as his speculated suitors, Lakers and Spurs, have reportedly not shown much interest in the three-time All-Star, as per ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Because of this setback, the Hawks might have to either find new suitors for Young or play at least one more season with him as their leader. What do you think they should do?