After the New Orleans Pelicans' season was derailed by injuries, the future of the team was completely up in the air. They came into the year with legitimate title hopes after trading for All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray at the top of the offseason. While they had roster holes that kept them outside of the top tier of contenders, no one expected them to be at the bottom of the Western Conference a third of the way into the campaign.
With their season essentially lost to injury, fans and analysts were calling on the Pelicans to tank for the remainder of the year to chase a high draft pick instead of a minuscule chance at making the postseason. Loaded with high-end talent like Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Dejounte Murray, and CJ McCollum, though, it was difficult to see New Orleans landing at the top of the lottery even with their abysmal start to the year.
Any chance at acquiring a top-three pick in this upcoming draft would have been dependent on either the Pels enduring even more injuries or shedding some of their veterans. It was recently reported that New Orleans is willing to listen to offers for all of their players, outside of a small group of young prospects that they've deemed untouchable, but is anyone truly ever untouchable in the NBA?
Buy or sell: Pelicans marked three players as unavailable for trade
1. Yves Missi
Yves Missi has been one of the few bright spots for the Pelicans in their season from hell. New Orleans drafted him with the 21st-overall pick in this past draft and threw him into a crucial role for a team looking to make the playoffs, even though he was a rookie late first-round selection who only began playing basketball a few years ago.
Despite all of the pressure that was levied upon him, Missi has exceeded expectations so far in his first season as a pro. So far, he's averaging 9.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in just under 26 minutes per game while shooting 55 percent from the field. He's established himself as an apt finisher, lob threat, and shot-blocker in just 26 games.
He's also shown flashes that suggest he could even be a much better player in the future. Missi has flirted with a bit of ball-handling and playmaking, displaying flexibility and agility that's rare for athletes his size. If he can continue to develop those guard skills, extend his range, bulk up, improve his defensive recognition and instincts, or all of the above, he could become one of the best big men in the league in a few years. That's not a player that a team should give up on in their first year.
Verdict: Buy
2. Herb Jones
Earlier this year, it was reported that teams around the league had already begun putting in calls to New Orleans to ask about Herb Jones's availability after the Pelicans' horrid start to the season. According to Marc Stein and Jake Fisher, however, Jones is officially off the market.
Jones is an extremely beloved player, cherished by Pelicans fans, hoop heads, and rival executives in the NBA. His defensive acumen is special, capable of singlehandedly raising a team's ceiling on that end of the court with his reflexes, physical tools, and versatility. He can both shut down an opponent's best individual scorer and disrupt an offense as a roamer. He can guard one through four with ease and can even check the occasional center.
While Jones's defense is absolutely phenomenal and makes him a malleable piece that could upgrade any team, he's far from a perfect player. His offensive shortcomings make him a liability on the other side of the ball, especially his lack of deep shooting consistency and aggressiveness. He's the exact type of player that gets exposed in the playoffs when opposing defenses completely ignore them to load up on more impactful attackers.
He's technically a young prospect in that he just entered the fourth season of his career, but, at 26 years old, there's not much room left for him to grow as a player. Herb Jones should definitely be available for the right price, and I do believe that Vice President David Griffin would be willing to deal him if he was blown away by an offer.
Verdict: Sell
3. Trey Murphy III
Trey Murphy III has long been one of the most desired players in the league. An absolute sniper at 6'10 with plenty of athleticism and defensive potential, he's the type of talent that any team would love to have on their wings. Despite his combination of established abilities and potential, he's always seemed capable of more than what he's shown with the Pelicans.
In New Orleans, he's only started 101 out of 212 possible games. Most of those starts came out of necessity due to injury, but when the team was fully healthy, he was stuck on the bench behind Herb Jones, CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, and Zion Williamson.
It was believed that TMIII would explode on the scene as soon as he got the opportunity to do so. We're starting to see some glimpses of that now. In his last five games — between December 5 and December 15 — he's averaged 19.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field and 37 percent from deep.
Still only 24 years old, Murphy III has shown incremental growth as a slasher and self-creator on offense. His size and athleticism suggest that he's capable of more on defense too, and he also has the capacity to do even more damage as a shooter with more opportunities and shots. I do think that there's a world in which Griffin and the rest of the Pelicans' brass receives an offer for TMIII that they can't refuse, but I believe it would take a monster package to pry him out of New Orleans.
Verdict: Buy