Holder on the night of Sunday to Monday, on the occasion of the third preseason game of the Pelicans, victorious against the Spurs, Trey Murphy III perfectly fulfilled the role that will be his during the regular season. Or at least the one his coach Willie Green envisions for him. “I just want him to trigger behind the arc. If it is open, receives the leather and has even a minimum of space, it should be ready to draw. »
The message was received by the Pelicans sophomore, who bombarded the Spurs defense with a 7/10 from 3-point range, for 27 points in total. A quality performance that made up for a timid first outing, against the Pistons earlier in the week: 8 points at 3/7 on shots, including an encouraging but not enough 2/4 behind the arc.
The difference between the two encounters? A much more aggressive and enterprising Trey Murphy III, stung to the quick by remarks… from his father.
“My dad called me earlier today. He annoyed me a bit: he told me that I was not aggressive enough, that I looked like the player I was in high school. said the winger after the win over Spurs. “It motivated me to prove him wrong. But he’s right about that. As soon as I’m open, I have to shoot. »
Shoot more to diversify the attack
Already well regulated in the exercise of outside shooting last year, but on a low volume (38.2% on three attempts per game), Trey Murphy III therefore has the green light to make more talk about the whipping of his wrist this season. If we want to project ourselves, we can remember that during his 2020/21 season in Virginia, he was very efficient in this area, on a substantial volume: 43.3% success rate on five attempts per game.
And in the attack of the Pelicans very centered on the “mid-range” and the baskets near the circle, with Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy III will benefit from many open positions behind the arc.
“The defense will have to choose between stopping the drives or going out on me to avoid the outside shot. They won’t be able to stop both” thus concluded the 22-year-old winger, aware of his importance in ensuring the “spacing” of the Pelicans, and helping his comrades to take advantage of more spaces.
