The Atlanta Hawks have been linked to Trey Murphy ever since the summer began.
First, it was rumored that Atlanta would directly send the 8th pick (formerly owned by New Orleans, coincidentally) to the Pels in exchange for Murphy. After that fell through, talks have moved on to future draft capital, but still linger around all the same.
Murphy has established himself as one of the most renowned 3&D wings in recent years, but that pattern may have taken a shocking pitfall last season - was Atlanta correct to steer clear of the potential Murphy nightmare this season?
Murphy's catastrophic defense - lack of effort, or reduced mobility?
Trey Murphy's defense took a cataclysmic downturn last year. Amongst all NBA players logging at least 400 2-point attempts defended, Murphy ranked fourth worst in the entire NBA, with shooters posting a whopping 60.3% against him as a primary defender from inside the arc.
At first glance, you'd think perhaps this is an issue of nonexistent interior help defense from New Orleans, and you'd be correct - the Pels don't roster a rim protector capable of alleviating poor perimeter defense. Yves Missi is passable as a deterrent, while Derik Queen is downright disastrous in his own right.
However, if that were true, you'd see other Pels on this list - yet they're absent. Therefore, Murphy's defensive woes can only be chocked up to two remaining possibilities.
First, perhaps Murphy has reduced his effort on defense to ramp up his offensive efforts. This is certainly plausible, and it's a trend we see far too often amongst rising wings.
Jalen Johnson is a great example for Hawks fans to reference - early on in his career, he leveraged his size and athleticism to force turnovers or help on the weakside as a rim protector frequently. Since then, he's focused his energy more on offense, leaving much to be desired defensively.
Second, perhaps Murphy's long battle with various injuries is taking a toll on his lateral quickness. This is also an incredibly common symptom of aging and injury history in the NBA - that's why many All-NBA teams are comprised of younger guards/wings who still have their quickness about them, while bigs often age more gracefully on defense, leveraging their size and defensive IQ to make up for their lack of speed.
Whatever the cause may be, it's a problem.
Murphy's shooting alone isn't enough to justify New Orleans' lofty price
Without his elite defense to flank his shooting, New Orleans simply can't expect Trey Murphy to command the price they've been asking for.
Outside of the potential Flemings trade on draft night, it's been rumored that Trey Murphy could command multiple first round picks - at least, that's what the New Orleans front office is asking.
While Murphy's shooting is truly an outlier of an ability - not only does he shoot near 40% from range, but it's often from well behind the arc - it's not enough to command multiple firsts. If the Pelicans finally come to their senses, I wouldn't be shocked if Murphy ultimately went for significantly less than current asking price.
It appears, once again, Onsi Saleh has made the correct call - wait the Pelicans out, and see if their asking price for a depreciating asset goes down. If it doesn't, steering clear was always the right choice.
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