New Orleans Pelicans Emerging Wing Among 'Most Desirable Trade Assets'

A young New Orleans Pelicans wing player ready to break out has been named one of the team's best trade assets.

Apr 3, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) looks to pass against the Orlando Magic during the first half at Smoothie King Center. / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Eventually, the New Orleans Pelicans are going to have to do something with the logjam they currently have on the wing.

Head coach Willie Green will have his hands full trying to find minutes for all of the players he has at the forward spot with the top three being Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy and Herbert Jones.

CJ McCollum, Jordan Hawkins and Javonte Green are also in that mix, as shooting guard minutes could be compromised, too, as Green attempts to navigate things.

Of course, the easiest way to alleviate the logjam and address other weaknesses on the roster, such as the center spot, is to make a trade.

Alas, it takes at least two to tango to get a deal done and there doesn’t seem to be much activity on the market about a month before the regular season gets underway.

While so much of the focus has been on Ingram as a trade candidate, what if the Pelicans pivoted to moving one of their other trade assets?

Over at Bleacher Report, Greg Swartz has written a piece highlighting the most desirable trade assets for each team in the league.

For New Orleans, one of the players mentioned was their rising star.

“Murphy, 24, deserves to be a full-time starter, an opportunity that may not present itself this year with Ingram still on the roster. A super athlete and knock-down three-point shooter with a rainbow arc, Murphy is eligible to sign an extension in New Orleans but has yet to do so.”

All of the focus has been on Ingram’s extension talks, which has led to the 2021 first-round pick being put on the backburner. If a deal isn’t agreed to with Murphy, trade rumors are going to begin to swirl around him as well.

The Virginia product is likely who the Pelicans would prefer working out a long-term deal with. He is younger and his skill set fits around Zion Williamson better given the 3-and-D base which he is working with.

Categorizing him as only a 3-and-D player, however, doesn’t provide a full scope of what he is capable of achieving.

Should a starting spot be given to him, along with a more prominent role in the game plan, a new player could emerge.

Other layers of Murphy’s game have flashed in previous seasons, but have not been fully unleashed. That would change if New Orleans moves Ingram, or he is traded to a team that has a bigger role available on the wing.