Earlier this month, the New Orleans Pelicans traded for Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray and the franchise is ecstatic about landing the guard. During the team’s Summer League game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, executive vice president of basketball operations, David Griffin spoke about their plan for the former Hawks star and his fit alongside CJ McCollum.
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He suggested that the Hawks did him a disservice by changing his role after acquiring him from the San Antonio Spurs in 2022. He noted that playing off the ball and being relegated to a shooting guard hindered him offensively. Griffin claimed that the former All-Star will reprise his role as the primary ball-handler in New Orleans. He said,
“A lot of what makes Dejounte special is the ability to make the right read. So, one of the things that we wanted to add to our group was dynamic rolling playmakers…We’re excited about what we have the potential to do, to put him into position to go back to being more of a point guard.”
"When he went from San Antonio to Atlanta, he became less ball dominant… A lot of what makes Dejounte special is the ability to make the right read… You saw [CJ] off-ball quite a bit last year"
— David Griffin on Dejounte Murray and CJ McCollum pic.twitter.com/FpyLjefanb
— Pelicans Film Room (@PelsFilmRoom) July 12, 2024
Griffin added that Murray taking over as the starting point guard will help alleviate the pressure off McCollum, who was forced to play as the Pelicans’ playmaker-in-chief. He claimed that the veteran guard will play off the ball more next season, a role he’s fairly comfortable with.
He lauded the 32-year-old for his willingness to alter his role to ensure the team is set up for success. McCollum’s new role as the shooting guard should bode well for the guard. Last season, he was relegated to the third option on offense behind Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. He averaged 16 shot attempts per game, the fewest since he became a starter in his third season in the league.
However, he averaged 8.4 three-point attempts per game, the second-highest mark of his career, and converted a career-high 42.9% of his shots from beyond the arc. The Pelicans seemingly believe that McCollum is an exceptional catch-and-shoot threat and have thus acquired an underutilized point guard who could help exploit his stellar shooting ability.
Griffin is excited to see Murray, McCollum, and Williamson feature together. On paper, the trio’s individual abilities fit well and will bring the best out of everyone. The Pelicans’ win total has increased steadily in each of the last four campaigns. Griffin believes Murray’s arrival and McCollum’s move to a new role could help the franchise crack the 50-win mark for the first time since the 2007-o8 season.
