Pelicans lock up Trey Murphy III as uncertain future looms for roster

One piece of the New Orleans Pelicans roster puzzle has been firmly put into place, as the team signed Trey Murphy III to a four-year, $112 million extension on Monday, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, locking up the sharpshooting wing through 2029.

October 21 is the last day players from the 2021 Draft can sign rookie extensions before entering restricted free agency in 2025. Instead of letting Murphy test the waters of restricted free agency — where he'd undoubtedly draw tons of interest from opposing teams — the Pelicans front office and GM Bryson Graham decided to lock down Murphy now, and at $28 million a year, Murphy decided on some long-term stability instead of forgoing an extension now and hoping for more next summer.

With a breakout season in 2024-25, Murphy could have fetched considerably more than $28 million a year on the open market. Still, with a potential injury or a rough statistical year, his value could have dropped, so you can't fault Murphy for putting pen to paper now, thus being able to focus on the actual basketball aspect of being a basketball player.

Murphy has already established himself as one of the best shooters in the NBA, shooting a combined 39.2 percent from deep in his first three seasons on 5.7 attempts per game, and he's not just a catch-and-shoot guy, either. Murphy is constantly hunting his own shot and can connect from well beyond the arc. It doesn't feel like Murphy is close to done growing, either, and suggesting he could make an All-Star game in a few years isn't delusional. He's a good, productive, helpful NBA player that 30 teams would like to have; New Orleans was smart to lock him down, even with turnover looming for the rest of the roster.

Trade rumors continue to swirl around New Orleans Pelicans star Brandon Ingram

While Murphy is now locked up for the long haul, questions still remain about the Pelicans other lanky wing, Brandon Ingram, who is entering the final year of a five-year contract before entering unrestricted free agency next summer. Neither New Orleans nor Ingram seem particularly interested in a new deal, and an Ingram trade is even more likely after Murphy's extension.

What New Orleans could receive in a potential Ingram deal is a bit of a mystery; the 6-foot-8 scorer has averaged over 20 points per game each of his past five seasons and improved his facilitation skills in the past couple of years, but he's now an expiring deal and whichever team potentially trades for him will likely want an unofficial commitment that he's willing to sign a long-term deal in summer of 2025. At least with Murphy signed, the Pels can take a deep breath for now, even with Ingram's future still murky.