The Lakers likely wouldn't have to do much homework on Murray since they were one of the teams that reportedly made an offer to the Hawks for the veteran guard prior to the trade deadline in February.

Given what is known about the uncertainty around Russell's future with the Lakers, they have every reason to keep an eye on what the Hawks are going to do with Murray.

Murray has averaged at least 20.0 points and 6.0 assists per game in each of the past three seasons. He's never been a great three-point shooter, but he connected 36.3 percent of the time on a career-high 7.1 attempts per game.

The Lakers need another primary ballhandler who is capable of taking some of the pressure off LeBron James, assuming he returns to the club either by opting in to his $51.4 million salary for next season or signing a new contract. Murray has the ability to do that, as well as providing solid perimeter defense if he were to end up in Los Angeles.

If the Pelicans are going to trade Brandon Ingram, which seems like a growing possibility, they will need to add a player who can replace his offensive production if they want to have a shot at competing for a playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Even if New Orleans was to keep Ingram, the team could stand to bring in a true point guard. CJ McCollum has handled the job admirably since being acquired from the Portland Trail Blazers, but he's better suited to playing the two-guard spot.

Murray had to shift to shooting guard when he was acquired by Atlanta because Trae Young already had the point locked down. Adding him to a nucleus that features Zion Williamson and Herb Jones would give the Pelicans a foundation that could be good enough to move them out of the play-in mix and into the top six in the Western Conference.

The 76ers seem likely to turn over every stone in order to add a third star-caliber player to their roster with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. They are almost certainly going to aim very high to start the offseason, with a player like Paul George potentially being a primary target if he leaves the Los Angeles Clippers.

Murray would be a consolation prize for the Sixers, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't significantly help them in their quest to get over the hump in the playoffs. Having him as their third scoring option in a postseason series instead of, say, Tobias Harris would make them much more formidable against the top teams in the Eastern Conference.