New Orleans Pelicans: 3 reasons Trey Murphy III will thrive in New Orleans

New Orleans Pelicans NBA Draft: Trey Murphy III takes pride in his defense

Most rookies can’t stay on the floor because they can’t defend, as learning the nuances of NBA defensive rotations takes time for some, and for most, they are making a huge leap in the level of competition they are trying to stop.

Trey Murphy III should be up to the task as a 6-foot-9 combo guard/forward with a wingspan of over 7-feet.

Murphy III also takes pride in defense and knows it is the key to him making the league. He transferred from Rice to Virginia specifically because he wanted to be become a better defender.

Tony Bennett is known for developing quality NBA players at Virginia and if you don’t play defense, you won’t play for Bennett. He has helped mold guys like De’Andre Hunter and Malcolm Brogdon into plus defenders and Trey Murphy III could be next on that list.

Murphy III put in the work on the defensive end and should be a guy who can help improve the Pels’ porous defense on the wing.

I was very excited when Trey Murphy III fell into the New Orleans Pelicans’ lap with the 17th pick and think he could be one of the steals of the NBA Draft.