Dig deep enough into the NBA's transaction log, and you'll find skeletons in the closets of all 30 franchises. Every club has made moves it regrets, and while there's little sense for the decision-makers to dwell on the past, many of them are still facing the ramifications of those deals gone awry. So, in the spirit of spooky season, let's revisit the one trade still haunting each team.
The trade: Danilo Gallinari, 2025 and 2027 first-round picks and a 2026 first-round pick swap to the San Antonio Spurs for Dejounte Murray and Jock Landale This might be a controversial pick, since Atlanta's decision at the 2018 draft to swap out Luka Dončić for Trae Young and a first-round pick later spent on Cam Reddish could lead to a lifetime of regret. At least that choice—unforgivable as it may appear in hindsight—is behind the franchise, though. As for the Hawks' 2022 all-in wager on Murray, though, they can't even get the grief process started on that misfire.
That's because the damage done with that deal is ongoing. Want to know why Atlanta traded away Murray but stopped short of entering a tear-down tank job this summer? It's because this trade cost the Hawks' control of their 2025, 2026 and 2027 first-round picks. Even if they hit the draft-lottery jackpot, the prize wouldn't belong to them.
They are indefinitely trapped on the treadmill of mediocrity, and because of this trade, it could be years before they're able to put any sort of roster-building plan into practice. The .