Haynes: Dejounte Murray Trade Talks Between Hawks, Pelicans 'Halted' amid NBA Rumors

It doesn't look like Dejounte Murray will be headed to the New Orleans Pelicans.

TNT Sports' Chris Haynes reported a potential trade between the Atlanta Hawks and Pelicans that would have sent the guard to New Orleans "has halted with no progress in sight" ahead of Thursday's 3 p.m. ET deadline.

This comes after Haynes previously reported the Pelicans were "in play" for Murray.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports also reported Wednesday that New Orleans and Atlanta "held tangible talks" that included discussions about Murray in addition to some involving Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu of the Hawks. Still, Fischer noted "there has been little traction" between the two teams.

That is still the case Thursday, which is a disappointing development for any Pelicans fans hoping to see the addition of Murray.

While there has been no shortage of rumors surrounding the guard, there is also no urgency from Atlanta's perspective when it comes to a Murray trade. He is under contract through the 2026-27 season with a player option for the 2027-28 campaign.

This is not a case of a team that realistically isn't a contender needing to move on from an impending free agent before he potentially leaves for nothing during the upcoming offseason.

Still, it isn't surprising the Pelicans were at least interested. They could use a traditional point guard to allow CJ McCollum to move off the ball more, and the reality that forward Brandon Ingram leads the team in assists per game (5.7) underscores the need for another facilitator.

Murray is averaging 21.4 points, 5.2 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game this season and isn't far removed from his 2021-22 All-Star campaign when he averaged 9.2 assists a night for the San Antonio Spurs.

He could have been an impact piece in the backcourt for the Pelicans, but it seems like they will need to figure out a way to make noise in the Western Conference playoffs without him.