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#3 Trey Murphy III, Rookie Guard/Forward, New Orleans Pelicans
Trey Murphy III was selected 17th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies, who traded his draft rights to the New Orleans Pelicans. Murphy stands at 6-foot 8-inches, making him more of a wing player than any traditional position.
In the Summer League, the rookie looked ready for NBA play, averaging 16 points with seven rebounds in his four games. Murphy was also a dead-eye shooter from three, making 44% on 6.3 attempts.
As pre-season came around, his stats have only gotten better. He averaged 17.5 points with 6.5 rebounds in the preseason, and his three-point shooting has shot up to 53% on 4.3 attempts. Even though he is hot from three right now, he has struggled from the rest of the field. Murphy’s field goal percentage in the preseason is just 43% on 12.3 attempts per game.
It is unclear what role Murphy will play in the upcoming Pelicans season, but with Zion Williamson expected to miss some time, there will be some available minutes. Murphy has shown that he can shoot the lights out of the ball. Now it will just be about finding consistency in the NBA.
#2 Jared Butler, Guard, Utah Jazz
Jared Butler fell to the 10th pick of the second round in the 2021 NBA Draft. His draft rights were traded around a few times before landing with the Utah Jazz, where he could be carving out an excellent role for himself.
Butler has come out and has just been a bucket in this preseason, averaging 18 points and 4.3 assists in just 24 minutes per game over his three appearances. Despite only shooing 33% from three on six attempts, Butler has still put up points from everywhere else on the court. The youngster takes 15 shots a game, making 49% of them, while only taking two free throws attempts per game.
Butlers’ offensive ability looks legit, and if he can become more consistent from three, he could be helpful off the bench for the Jazz. He is on a team looking to make a playoff run, and it might be hard to find minutes for a rookie in the regular season. Butler, however, made the case that he was worth more than a second-round pick, leading all rookies to average points per game.
#1 Jordan Poole, Guard, Golden State Warriors
Yes, Jordan Poole is entering his third season at 22 years old, but what he is doing cannot be overlooked. In just 22.7 minutes per game, Poole is averaging 21.8 points per game. Poole is shooting 36% from three and 50% from the field. The youngster is averaging the fifth highest number of points per game this preseason.
The way Poole ended last season made it feel like he was on the verge of breaking out. He has averaged only 10.3 points per game in 20.3 minutes in his two seasons in the NBA. However, after last season’s All-Star break, Poole turned it on, his minutes increased from just 10.6 minutes per game to 23.4, and it was because he went from 6.8 points per game to 14.4.
It seems like the second half of Poole’s last season is the one that will likely show up this season. He will play a crucial role for the Golden State Warriors as they will be without Klay Thompson for some time and still think they are a team that can make a deep playoff run.
