The NBA may be a business, but the relationships one forms as a player can last long after the careers as a player end. And such was the wisdom Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray shared with the Celtics Wire ahead of his team’s overseas tilt with the Orlando Magic at the NBA’s 2023 Mexico City Game on Thursday evening.
Murray, who played alongside rising Boston Celtics guard Derrick White on the San Antonio Spurs’ roster under head coach Gregg Popovich for parts of five seasons before their respective trades to Boston and Atlanta, had plenty to say about the business side of the league as well as his former teammate.
“(Getting traded) is out of your control,” Murray explained. “As a player, you play the game to get better.”
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— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) November 10, 2023
“You learn the game, learn the business outside of it,” he explained. “You could be on this team today and another team tomorrow.”
“You continue to be a great person and work hard. Noise spreads around the league who you are as a person, your character, how hard you work, or if you don’t work hard. What’s important is being who you are and letting that stuff control itself.”
“That’s the thing about the NBA,” Murray continued. “You build relationships.”
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— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) November 10, 2023
“It’s not in your control whether you spend your entire career with one team like (Dallas Mavericks legend) Dirk Nowitzki,” said the Washington State alum, “or you’re traded to different teams.”
“So you build relationships, and I think that’s what lasts and that’s the most important because basketball is not forever. It’s a game that you want to win. But at the end of the day, we’re competing in the game.”
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— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) November 10, 2023
“So I feel like for me personally, I take all the relationships I build really seriously and you know, we learn each other where we come from learn each other’s families, and we move on from that so we stay in contact,” he added.
“(Derrick) just had another baby, so I’m happy for him. He’s doing well in Boston — they love him and they love him — you can’t ask for much more than that.”
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— Dr. Justin Quinn (@justinquinnn) November 8, 2023
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