When the New Orleans Pelicans essentially stayed put at the 2024-25 NBA trade deadline, the franchise sent a message to its fans and the rest of the league about what direction it had chosen for the future. Early in the year, their rotation was ravaged by injuries, ending their season before it could even really begin. While the campaign was doomed, it presented with both a golden opportunity and an incredibly difficult choice.
As New Orleans would now be competing for lottery odds for a draft that's expected to be loaded with top-end talent, the team was given a chance to restart, with their upcoming pick presenting itself as a valuable potential cornerstone. Coming away with a blue-chip prospect like Cooper Flagg or Dylan Harper would make it easier to say goodbye to the Pelicans' previous era and the players that represented it.
Alas, New Orleans didn't choose to reset at the trade deadline. Instead, they opted to tread water, in hopes that the losses will pile up organically so they can add a top-tier rookie to an already established core for next season. They wound up making just two trades: a salary dump of Daniel Theis and the inevitable deal that sent Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for a modest return.
Some might say that the Pelicans chose not to blow up the roster because they still believe in Zion Williamson and want to continue to build around him. While New Orleans opted not to trade Zion away this year, he's not the cornerstone that the Pelicans should be crafting their future plans around — it should be Trey Murphy III.
Trey Murphy III should be the Pelicans' first priority moving forward
It's ironic that New Orleans sent Brandon Ingram away because he wasn't a good fit next to Zion Williamson, considering that Big Z is quickly losing his spot in the hierarchy to Trey Murphy III, whose explosion onto the scene has almost perfectly coincided with BI's absence for the Pelicans.
This season, TMIII is averaging 22.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.9 stocks per game. Those are all career highs, including a +7.6 jump in scoring. Despite that fact, Murphy III isn't even in Most Improved Player conversations yet this season.
He's been even better without Ingram this season. BI played his last game for the Pelicans on December 7. Since then, Murphy III is putting up 24.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field and 39 percent from deep. He's not a finished product yet either.
He'll only be turning 25 years old this summer and this season is basically the first NBA campaign he's had where he's been willing to put the ball on the floor and make a play. Despite being confined to a strict 3-and-D role for the first three years of his career, Murphy III has already emerged as an ultra-efficient scorer from all three levels of the court this season. With more reps and a greener light, who knows what levels he can reach moving forward.
All that said, there's still a strong chance that Murphy III might never reach some of the heights that Zion Williamson has already touched in this league. When healthy, Z has proven over and over again that he's one of the most dominant forces to have ever played this game. He's such a formidable force that he can still put up All-NBA numbers even though every single person in the arena knows exactly what he wants to do every single time he touches the rock. It just doesn't matter. Zion is going to get to the rim regardless.
That's what makes Zion and Murphy III such a tantalizing pairing. But, if the Pelicans had to pick just one moving forward, it should be Trey Murphy III. He might never be better than Z outright, but TMIII's game is more malleable and he doesn't carry the same baggage that Williamson does. Murphy might have his own lengthy injury history in the NBA, but he hasn't suffered serious, career-threatening ailments like Zion has, nor does he have the same conditioning and long-term health concerns.
Because of his more versatile and analytically friendly game, it's also easier to build a roster around Murphy III. With Zion, there are only a few finite ways to build a championship-level supporting cast around him. The Pelicans would need deep shooting and plus-defenders at every single position around Williamson. Murphy, a capable defender and lethal sniper, doesn't carry those same prerequisites. Hopefully, he and Zion will be the star duo that brings New Orleans basketball to unforeseen heights. If it came down to it, though, the Pelicans should be Trey Murphy III's team moving forward.