Is Trey Murphy III the missing piece for the Detroit Pistons?
Over the past year, Trey Murphy III is a player who’s consistently popped up when discussing who is the missing piece to the Detroit Pistons, the player capable of taking them over the top from just a playoff challenger in the East to a bona fide title contender.
Stationed in New Orleans as a member of the Pelicans to open his NBA career, Murphy showed clear signs of progression through each of the first four seasons of his rookie deal. By the time Murphy was ready to sign an extension to remain with the Pelicans, the 6-8 forward had already established himself as one of the most dynamic wings from his draft class, and New Orleans inked the Virginia product to another four-year contract, this one of the $112 million variety according to Spotrac.
After the Pelicans invested in Murphy as a player they’re comfortable building around, he repaid their confidence with his most productive season in the NBA yet, averaging 21.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while contributing 1.5 steals per game on the other end of the court. But as a lengthy wing who can guard multiple positions, Murphy’s three-point shooting precision (38.2% career rate) puts him into an esteemed category of stretch fours who the Pistons could use as a focal point of their squad for years to come considering the rest of their core is so young.
Right now, Cade Cunningham is the oldest of the three-man Detroit core at 24 years old, but that is far from old by any sense of the imagination. Instead, Cunningham’s seniority underscores how the Pistons have a talented foundation with Jalen Duren at 22 years of age and Ausar Thompson splitting the difference as a 23-year old.
If the Pistons are poised to make a move for Murphy during the offseason, the Pelicans are likely to command an assortment of assets in return, and for good reason. Murphy is easily worth multiple first round draft picks to most teams looking to make that next leap, and the Pelicans could fancy a combination of established role players, such as Isaiah Stewart or Duncan Robinson, in return. Both veterans helped the Pistons turn the corner from playoff hopeful to Eastern Conference juggernaut this past season, and the Pelicans are likely to see the value that the shot-swatting big man and the long-range assassin both added to Detroit's squad.
Now, it’s unknown if Pistons President of Basketball Operations Trajan Langdon would be willing to wheel and deal with players like Stewart and Robinson potentially on the block. Stewart is the longest-tenured Piston, and he’s viewed by many within the organization as the heartbeat of the team. Robinson, on the other hand, has only been in Motown for one season, but he ingratiated himself to the team immediately and began knocking down long-range bombs ever since arriving in the 313. So, it’s reasonable to assert that Langdon would prefer to keep such valuable role players on the team, but certain sacrifices are necessary in order to bring in a player of Murphy’s age and talent level.
From a stylistic standpoint, Murphy would be the perfect player to add to a Pistons team that’s searching for a long-term answer at the four. Tobias Harris, who started every game last season when healthy, is a 35-year old power forward who’s headed toward unrestricted free agency, so Detroit needs to pivot to a more youthful direction at some point in time. Murphy would check all the boxes that the Pistons are looking for and then some, so the only question is how much would it cost to land him and whether or not Langdon is willing to execute the deal.
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