Dejounte Murray trade spells doom for 'Spurs Way'

The San Antonio Spurs closed a chapter on Wednesday, moving fan favorite and All-Star Dejounte Murray to the Atlanta Hawks for three future first-round picks and what remains of Danilo Gallinari’s contract. 

The sky is falling.

I’m sure there are fans out there who are fans of the trade or just moving Murray in general, but I am not one of them. It makes little sense to trade away the best player on the team when everyone else on the roster is full of potential and has time to improve. 

Despite what you think about the trade, this moment spells the end for the “Spurs Way.” The San Antonio Spurs have long been revered for quality play, coaching, team basketball, and taking care of the guys on the roster, making sure they improve within the organization to find team success. 

The Spurs never traded David Robinson, Manu Ginobili, or Tim Duncan. George Gervin and Tony Parker were traded or signed elsewhere because they did not want to finish their career on the bench, and they left on good terms. DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge enjoyed the team and individual success in the Silver and Black but ultimately left to chase rings. 

Kawhi Leonard is a whole other story, but the burden fell on his shoulders.

Dejounte Murray is a whole different case. He was far and away the best player on the team, although the youthful promise and supporting cast seemed to be there. There was no reason to throw it all away. He was a fan favorite, All-Star, and had shown massive improvement every season.

The Spurs way is keeping players around and molding them into stars to win at home, not developing players for future picks. This isn’t Oklahoma City -- this is San Antonio. I’m not sure that Spurs fans can claim superiority over the rest of the league after this.

At least there will be room to add another point guard to the roster, and I have just the guy in mind.