When the Atlanta Hawks landed Dejounte Murray, a fair question was posed by many: How are the touches going to be divided up?
That seems to be of little concern for the Hawks with the start of their season one day away.
Murray is a gifted playmaker on the offensive end who can be a key contributor defensively, as well. But Atlanta already had a well-established playmaker in Young, so the addition of Murray naturally could cut into the guard’s touches.
For some players of Young’s ilk, that could become a problem. But John Collins told “Dukes and Bell” on Tuesday that he doesn’t foresee that becoming an issue.
“I feel like Trae, with all the powers he does have on the ball, it does wear on somebody playing like that," Collins said. "I think he had the highest usage rate in the league, obviously he’s one of the best in the league, in my opinion the best PG in the league, but it takes a toll on you mentally and physically having to make all those decisions being on the ball so much. …
“DJ can get his, he rebounds, he plays defense. You’ve got a guy like DJ, put DJ on any team and I feel like he helps out and he adds value. How could (Young) not be (happy)?”
If everything falls into place, the Hawks could have a high-flying offense, especially since the addition of Murray should free up Young to shoot more. At the very least, they can continue to lean on Young as their primary playmaker while allowing him to reap the benefits of having such a potent offensive player like Murray on the floor alongside him.
Whatever the Hawks need Murray to do, it sounds like they’re confident he can do it.
“You’ve got a two-way player (in Murray),” Hawks coach Nate McMillan told “Dukes and Bell.” “You’re certainly getting a talented player with a lot of potential, another playmaker that is out on the floor. A guy that will establish the defense for us, he can play with the basketball, he can play off the ball. You’ll see a lot of that with both he and Trae in the backcourt.
“But I think you have a guy that will bring some leadership to our group, and he’s been a really good fit for us in training camp. He’s very vocal, has a high basketball IQ, he loves to play at the defensive end of the floor.”
We’ll get the first regular season look at Murray and the Hawks on Wednesday, when they open their season against the Rockets.