Grading Dejounte Murray's New Orleans Pelicans return

The New Orleans Pelicans beat the Golden State Warriors 113-109. This was the Pelicans' 17th win this season, but more importantly, it was the return of Dejounte Murray. The All-Star guard hadn’t played since January 31 of last season after tearing his right Achilles. 

So what better way to give my full thoughts on Murray’s return to the court for the first time in over a year than give a grade for his performance tonight?

Murray gets a B grade in his return

First, let’s start with the box score stats Murray put up: 13 points, two rebounds, three assists, and one steal, while shooting 5/11 from the field and 1/4 from three.

Offensively, Murray didn’t look like he lost a step at all. First play of the game, he scored on an in-and-out backdoor cut. Murray’s jumper looked as good as it always has, as he drilled a mid-range pull-up in the first quarter. When attacking the rim, Murray showed zero fear of contact, even getting called for a charge on what could’ve been an and-one against Brandin Podziemski.

Early in the third quarter, the Warriors showed zone and had the Pelicans all out of sorts. Zone is something that has thrown the Pels off many times this season. So what did Murray do? He took control by demanding the ball and creating offense himself. First, it was hitting DeAndre Jordan in the short roll, then it was creating his own shot on a turnaround middy fade, and then he followed that up with a three off a screen. This is the type of offense and aggression the Pelicans have lacked all season in these types of situations. 

Then, down the stretch in the fourth quarter, he had a pair of sweet assists. One on a corner kick to Saddiq Bey for three, and the other on a short roll with Zion Williamson. Murray also checked back in with about two minutes to go and was a calming presence as things looked like they might fall apart. In the clutch, he drove right and finished with a layup high off the glass to seal it for New Orleans.

Defensively, Murray looked way more comfortable than I expected him to be coming back from a major leg injury. He was shuffling his feet really well, keeping his chest in front of his man, and had very active hands. The activity he was showing on that end had flashes of his Spurs days.

Other things I loved about this performance were Murray’s lack of fear despite this being his first game back from injury. As I mentioned, he wasn’t afraid to play through/initiate contact, but he also wasn’t afraid to make hustle plays. Twice, Murray dove on the court when he didn’t have to just so he could battle for a loose ball. These are the type of high-energy plays that get the crowd fired up and give the team a boost, but don’t appear in a box score. 

Murray did end the game with five turnovers, but I chalk that up mostly to rust. For a player returning after more than a year away, this was a strong debut and good enough for a B grade.