Tag: Trey Murphy III

Trey Murphy III would take Chet Holmgren over Victor Wembanyama

“Chet has a little bit of grit to him. You can tell he isn’t soft.”

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The 2023-24 rookie class is headlined by two seven-footers: Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren.

Wembanyama went No. 1 by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2023 NBA draft. Holmgren, who missed the 2022-23 season due to a foot injury, went No. 2 in the 2022 NBA draft.

Both seven-foot centers project to be elite defenders who can handle the ball and score like a guard. The Rookie of the Year race will likely be headlined by the two players.

The eerily similar builds of both players have led to conversations on which of the two is the better player. According to New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III, he’d take Holmgren over Wembanyama.

During his appearance on the “Road Trippin’ Show” podcast, Murphy III told Richard Jefferson, Channing Frye and Allie Clifton that he’d take Holmgren over Wembanyama if he had to choose one for the next year.

“Chet has a little bit of grit to him. You can tell he isn’t soft, that’s the easiest way to say this,” Murphy III. “He plays with a sort of tenacity that bigs need. Also, he’s very skilled — he’s a little more polished than Victor is. I feel like he shoots the ball better.”

This is quite the compliment for Holmgren, given Murphy III will see plenty of both players for the foreseeable future. Despite not playing a game yet, Holmgren continues to get respect from his peers.

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Pelicans pick Trey Murphy at No. 17 in 2021 NBA draft

The New Orleans Pelicans draft Trey Murphy III out of Virginia with the No. 17 pick.

The New Orleans Pelicans selected Virginia wing Trey Murphy III with the No. 17 pick in the 2021 NBA draft.

Murphy III, who has seen his draft stock jump up the big boards through the draft process, can come in on day one as a plug-and-play for Willie Green and the Pelicans. Murphy brings outstanding size, standing at 6-foot-9 who can defend multiple positions with an almost 7-foot-1 wingspan.

On the offensive end, Murphy can absolutely fill it up from outside, shooting 43% from 3-point range last season at Virginia. Over his three seasons in college, Murphy is a 40% 3-point shooter.

In his junior season at Virginia, Murphy averaged 11.3 points and 3.4 rebounds on 50.3% shooting from the field.

Murphy’s fit with the Pelicans is seemingly perfect as he could fit in with any team. As an unselfish player who doesn’t need the ball in his hands, Murphy will be able to spread the floor offensively on top of helping defend the best perimeter players on the opposing team.

The Pelicans acquired the No. 17 pick in a trade on Monday with the Memphis Grizzlies, which send Eric Bledsoe, Steven Adams, and No. 10 pick for Jonas Valanciunas and the No. 17 pick.

Stay tuned to Lonzo Wire to see who the Hornets select with their three second-round picks.

A roundup of NBA sleepers draft analysts are higher on than others

Who owns the most real estate on Davion Mitchell Island? Who is buying stock in Sharife Cooper?

Everyone loves Cade Cunningham. It’s not a hot take for an analyst to say that Cunningham is their favorite player in the class. That’s not particularly interesting to read, either.

But what is fascinating, however, is when an analyst deviates from the norm and ranks someone significantly higher than where the prospect falls in other rankings. What does that tell us about their individual scouting process and what they value? Further, what does that tell us about the potential draftee?

Some folks call it “buying stock” in a player. Others, like ESPN’s Zach Lowe or The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, call it owning real estate on a player’s island. I like to refer to it as a “draft crush” when I wind up higher than consensus in my evaluation of a player.

My process is ridiculously tedious but the results can be fairly useful. I’ve tracked the evolution of more than sixty unique mock drafts, big boards and draft models from trusted analysts and popular accounts on Twitter.

Each placement is assigned a value based on Kevin Pelton’s draft pick trade value chart. I do this because, as Pelton notes, the difference in relative value between the No. 5 overall pick and the No. 7 overall is much more stark than, say, that of the No. 45 pick and the No. 47 pick.

After composing an aggregate score based on each ranking, I can see where each analyst strays from the pack.

I’ll leave the conclusions drawn from these results up to the reader. But if nothing else, this can eventually be used as a bragging point if one writer was higher than consensus on a draftee who eventually ends up outperforming his draft position.

Final 2021 NBA Mock Draft: Latest intel, trade rumors and predicting all 60 picks

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

The names that you’re most likely to hear at the top are Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green and Evan Mobley. But the draft will start heating up once guys like Jalen Suggs, Scottie Barnes and Jonathan Kuminga start to find their new homes.

This draft will also be unique in that there will be fewer players in attendance than usual. According to one prospect who recently spoke to For The Win, due to COVID-19 restrictions, those not invited to the green room are not allowed to come to the stage and shake the hand of the commissioner as they have been in years past.

Regardless of who is actually in the building, however, it is certain to be an exciting and life-changing night for the next generation of NBA talent.

Based on conversations I’ve had with scouts around the league, and from reports and tea leaves left in other mock drafts from trusted draftniks, below is how I project the events will unfold at Barclays Center and on ESPN and ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET on July 29.

2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 7.0: Ranking the full class of prospects

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in — and who has withdrawn — from the class.

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in – and who has withdrawn – from the class.

In order to get a better sense of where all of the prospects stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Yahoo, The Athletic, The Ringer, Yahoo, NBA Big Board and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Since our previous update last month, some of the players with the most positive momentum include Quentin Grimes, Joe Wieskamp, Vrenz Bleijenbergh, Aaron Wiggins, Justin Champagnie, Jericho Sims, Jason Preston, Josh Primo, Neemias Queta, Trey Murphy and Bones Hyland.

Among players who ranked on our previous update who have since withdrawn from the draft include Roko Prkacin (32), Marcus Bagley (39), Terrence Shannon (48), Ariel Hukporti (50), Max Abmas (53), Johnny Juzang (54), Jordan Hall (66), Carlos Alocen (69) and Ochai Agbaji (75).

The most notable omissions who remain in this class but not these rankings are Yves Pons, Scottie Lewis, Jay Huff, Marcus Zegarowski, Aamir Simms, Dalano Banton, Matt Mitchell, Jose Alvarado, Carlik Jones, Derrick Alston Jr., Romeo Weems, Balsa Koprivica, Chaundee Brown, Isaiah Miller, Jordan Schakel and D.J. Carton.

Note that for the offensive roles, we borrowed a fun idea from Todd Whitehead (formerly of Nylon Calculus) with help from our friends at Bball-Index.com to create a slightly tweaked formula from the version they use.

The goal of that is not to explain how well a player scores but rather offer context for the way that he was used on his most recent team. This should help you predict how he might be used at the next level.

Meanwhile, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

2021 NBA Draft Big Board 5.0: Final rankings of the Top 100 prospects

With just over a week left until the 2021 NBA draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, it’s officially the most wonderful time of the year! 

With just over a week left until the 2021 NBA draft at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, it’s officially the most wonderful time of the year!

That means that after a slew of surprising early entry withdrawals impacted the worlds of both college and international basketball, the next generation of NBA talent is getting closer to entering the league. As players finalize their place on big boards in front offices, I wanted to offer my opinion on how I think those rankings should look.

Note that our list is certainly going to look different from the lists at ESPN, The Athletic, Bleacher Report and other publications. Player evaluation is an inexact science. Part of the process is being willing to admit when you were wrong about a player.

But avoiding group-think and ending higher than consensus on a player is how an NBA team ends up selecting them in the draft. With that in mind, here is who I would target if I were running a front office.

Trey Murphy: ‘My ability to be a student of the game puts me over the top’

Trey Murphy, a 6-foot-9 wing for the Virginia Cavaliers, is widely considered one of the best sharpshooting prospects in this draft class.

Trey Murphy, a 6-foot-9 wing for the Virginia Cavaliers, is widely considered one of the best sharpshooting prospects in this draft class.

Murphy was the only collegiate player who declared for the NBA draft to shoot at least 50.0 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from beyond the arc and 90.0 percent from the free-throw line. He was able to average 1.24 points per possession this past season, per Synergy, which ranked him in the 99th percentile among all D-I players.

He recently caught up with HoopsHype to discuss how he has evolved from a 6-foot-3, two-star recruit coming out of high school to a projected first-round pick in the 2021 NBA draft. Murphy also discussed how he studies basketball as well as his interest in music, fashion and plenty more.

Please note this interview was minorly edited in its transcript for clarity.

Trey Murphy III discusses career goals after working out with Lakers

Virginia forward Trey Murphy III outlined his career goals after a workout with the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Los Angeles Lakers brought in six more players for workouts Saturday for the NBA draft, and among those players was Virginia forward Trey Murphy III.

Los Angeles also interviewed Murphy during the NBA draft combine in late June, which could mean they’re intrigued by his potential.

The Lakers have the 22nd pick in the draft, and Murphy’s stock has risen since his performance during the combine; he could be a realistic target for L.A. barring any trades.

After his workout with the team, Murphy discussed his career goals once drafted, via Harrison Faigen of SB Nation:

“In my first year, obviously you can’t control a lot. It’s up to your effort and energy, and I’m going to have to learn and make my adjustments, but over time I want to become an All-Star. I want to be really good in the game of basketball, and I want to play for a long time. I really love this game a lot, and hopefully I can do it at a high level.”

Murphy has the build of a 3-and-D archetype, which the Lakers don’t really have on the roster aside from LeBron James.

Murphy also knocked down 43 percent of his 3s on good volume in his last season, which would help his status as someone who could contribute immediately. That is what the Lakers would prefer from a draftee considering the current title window with James and Anthony Davis.

The NBA draft will take place on July 29.

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Sixers 2021 NBA mock draft: Trey Murphy III continues to pop up at 28

A recent mock draft has the Philadelphia 76ers selecting Virginia forward Trey Murphy III at 28 overall.

The Philadelphia 76ers will look to add another impact player to the rotation in the 2021 NBA draft, hoping to find a diamond in the rough with the 28th overall pick. They found such a player at No. 21 in the 2020 draft, Tyrese Maxey.

Ideally, Philadelphia would probably like to add somebody who can create their own shot from the perimeter while being able to play defense on the other end. However, they should also look at a backup big man who can knock down a jumper as well.

In a mock draft performed by CBS Sports, the Sixers select Virginia forward Trey Murphy III:

It’s plausible, now, that Murphy goes in the first round. This was unthinkable a year ago and NEARLY unthinkable five months ago. From Rice to Virginia to the NBA. Fascinating path, all the more so because he wasn’t declared eligible until right at the start of last season. Murphy was one of only two players to shoot 50/40/90 last season. For the uninitiated, that’s the coveted club of players that make at least 50% of their total field goals, 40% of 3-point attempts and 90% of free throws. I have to put a top-30 assessment on a player like that, all the more when you factor in his length and perimeter defense proficiency. This is a good draft night story.

Murphy III had a really promising season with the Cavaliers in the ACC. Going from Rice to Virginia is a challenge for anybody with the step up in competition, but he handled it well. He averaged 11.3 points and he shot 43.3% from deep in the one season at Virginia and he would be a nice addition to the Sixers who are in need of another backup big man at the moment.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Former Sixers scout evaluates potential draft targets, upside, and fit

A former Philadelphia 76ers scout evaluates some potential draft targets for the Sixers before the 2021 NBA draft.

The 2021 NBA draft is approaching quickly and the Philadelphia 76ers need to identify a few different options that can help them. Due to their terrific regular season, the Sixers will have the 28th pick in the draft. It’s a tough spot to find a rotational player, but there are options.

To help Sixers Wire evaluate some potential options, former Sixers scout Michael VandeGarde sat down to discuss some options. VandeGarde worked in the NBA for 20 years and spent 18 of them with the Sixers, and is now working as a part-owner and advisor for Coach Tube helping to develop younger talent.

Sixers Wire: With Coach Tube, just explain to everybody out there that doesn’t really know what it’s all about.

VandeGarde: Coach Tube is a platform for anybody to get videos and the ability to learn any sport, not just basketball. We have videos from NBA people, we have videos from college coaches, NFL coaches, and it runs the gamut from basketball, football, wrestling, badminton, and it’s just a way for people to learn the sports that they love from all over the world and it brings, I think, something special in the COVID area but it’s been around for many years now and it just gets bigger and bigger every year and some of the biggest names in the business are on the platform. I think it’s something that everybody should check out if they have time.

VandeGarde is currently busy with a host of projects including consulting ventures in the NBA as well as CoachTube.com, a site that offers coaching courses in sports. The digital platform enables athletes and coaches to receive sports coaching courses from the likes of former NBA and NFL head coaches and players.
Last spring, CoachTube conducted the world’s largest sports clinic virtually shortly after COVID-19 shut down the global sports world.

With VandeGarde’s background covered, let’s get into the college prospects that he’s looking at for Philadelphia at 28:

Please note this interview was minorly edited in its transcript for clarity.