The long-awaited return of Dejounte Murray is almost here for the New Orleans Pelicans, and the veteran guard is poised to impact the Pels in a plethora of ways. The former All-Star brings leadership, defensive edge, and a competitive swagger that this team has lacked at times, currently sitting 14th in the Western Conference. But the most important thing Murray can bring is flying under the radar of many.
Murray's return is bound to have a massive impact on the development of rookie point guard Jeremiah Fears. The seventh overall pick in this past summer's draft is averaging 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game this season.
Fears has been solid in his rookie campaign, starting off rather strongly and earning a starting role just three games into his career. But around mid-January, we started to see him hit the proverbial rookie wall, leading to him being moved to a less demanding role as the team's backup point guard. Since making the switch to that role, Fears' averages haven't skyrocketed, but the eye test shows a ton of improvement in his decision-making and overall control running an offense.
While Fears’ development appears to be on the right track, Murray’s return should only accelerate that growth.
Murray is the ideal mentor
When you look at the skill sets and styles of a young Murray and Fears, there are a fair number of similarities. Both guards play with elite speed, thrive getting downhill and scoring at the rim, aren't elite three-point shooters, are pretty capable playmakers, and bring solid size to the guard spot. While Murray was a much higher-level defender earning All-Defensive team honors in his second season, Fears' competitive nature on that end and mentality are strikingly similar to Murray's.
The similarities in their styles of play and mentality when on the court make the rest of this season a perfect chance for Murray to take Fears under his wing. We've seen how valuable it can be for young guards to have a veteran showing them the ropes at one of the league’s toughest positions. Players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Steph Curry both had mentors early in their careers, with SGA learning from Chris Paul and Curry learning from Monta Ellis.
This is a young Pelicans team that needs a lot of time and development to become special, and a crucial part in that is having mentors. Derik Queen has been able to rely on mentors, such as DeAndre Jordan and Kevon Looney, for support and guidance. For Fears, he's been left to figure things out on his own more than his fellow rookie, or at least until now. With Murray’s return, the Pelicans’ point guard of the future finally has an experienced voice to learn from.