The New Orleans Pelicans were unable to extend their win streak to three straight games against San Antonio on Saturday night, falling to the Spurs 126-119.
There was one big takeaway from the loss, though, and it was that Trey Murphy III looked like the player he expected to be this season. After starting the season averaging just 14.9 points per game and shooting under 40 percent from the field, Murphy III finally bounced back tonight and matched his career high of 41 points.
Murphy III’s confidence was higher than it has been all season; he took step-back threes, attacked mismatches, shooting over Victor Wembanyamaand simply demanded the ball from his teammates. It felt like he understood that if the Pelicans wanted to have any chance of beating the Spurs, he had to take control and put on a ridiculous offensive performance.
I really hope this performance was what Murphy III needed to remind himself that he is that guy and can be one of the league’s most potent scorers on any given night. If he can use this performance as a building block to get back on track and possibly achieve the All-Star breakout he expected, it would do wonders for the Pelicans’ season.
A tough start to the year will only make Murphy III a more complete player
If there’s one thing I learned from Murphy III’s season leading up to Saturday night, it’s that his shooting woes forced him to learn how to impact the game in ways other than scoring. His ability to create for others will only make him more of an offensive weapon for New Orleans.
Looking at some of the league’s top scorers like Jayson Tatum and DeMar DeRozan, the next step for them after being top scorers their entire careers was learning to create for others. This next step not only made them a more impactful player, but also made it harder for defenses to scheme and in turn made their teams stronger.
If Murphy III can use his performance against the Spurs as a way to regain his scoring touch while utilizing his growth as a playmaker, he could become a complete offensive weapon for the Pelicans. If that happens, the prospects for this Pelicans team for the rest of the season would be much higher than they were a day ago.
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