Orleans Pelicans unused Dejounte Murray underwent surgery to repair a fracture in his left hand and will be out 4 to 6 weeks, the team announced Friday. Murray was in shock throughout Orleans Unutilized’s season opener over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
Murray’s upset appeared to occur with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter against Chicago, which was Murray’s first game with the Pelicans. The former All-Superstar scored a triple with his team leading until the 12th, but it was contested by Zach LaVine and he suffered a dry fall.
Additionally, the Pelicans announced that Trey Murphy III, who sprained his right hamstring on Oct. 2, passed the benchmarks needed to begin the “return-to-play conditioning phase” of his rehab. There will be another update on their situation in about two weeks, according to the group. murphy signed a four-year, $112 million warranty extension just before the Monday deadline.
The unused Orleans were often seriously shorthanded in Murray’s debut. In addition to Murphy’s concussion, Zion Williamson was out with an illness. He overcame those absences to beat the Bulls 123-111 in part because he got 14 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds from Murray.
The Pelicans landed Murray in an offseason deal with the Atlanta Hawks. In that deal, they gave up two key reserves in Larry Nance Jr. and Dyson Daniels. Playmaker Jonas Valanciunas also left on a separate agency, as did key wing Naji Marshall. The front office consciously sacrificed intensity for a heavier roster this season. That plan may work if the players at the top of the roster stay healthy, but, one game into the season, Unutilized Orleans is already suffering on that front.
If there’s a silver lining to Murray’s shock, it’s that the Pelicans still have enough playmaking ability, if only Williamson overcomes his illness in a significantly inferior format. On Wednesday, Brandon Ingram led them in scoring with 33 points on 13-of-23 shooting, and CJ McCollum contributed 23 points on 9-of-19 shooting, along with five assists. Either of them has more opportunities to start the offense in Murray’s absence, and senior defenseman José Alvarado, who logged a best 13 minutes against the Bulls, is more than capable of playing big minutes.
In some ways, Murray’s absence actually makes things more effective for Unutilized Orleans. For now, there’s no need to worry about how comfortable Williamson, Ingram, McCollum and Murray are sharing the field. If the goal is to make products compatible where possible, however, the closest thing to that is clearly a setback.
