Jamahl Mosley has spent his first two games trying to find lineup combinations that work. One partnership with a history of working has received about eight minutes.
That's how little Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones have shared the floor during the Pelicans' 0-2 start. Add Zion Williamson, and their time together falls to around two minutes.
For a team struggling to defend and searching for offensive consistency, those are difficult numbers to understand. Murphy and Jones came into the league together in 2021, developed into important contributors, and helped New Orleans reach the playoffs twice. Their experience should have some value as Mosley works through his rotation.
So far, the Pelicans have made surprisingly little use of it.
Murphy's opportunities have disappeared
Murphy averaged more than 21 points in each of the past two seasons. Through two games, he's averaging 10, and the drop off involves much more than his shooting percentage.
His shot attemps have fallen from 15.9 per game last season to 10. His three-point shot attempts have dropped from 8.6 to 4.5. He's playing four fewer minutes per game, but the reduction in opportunities is much lower.
His current usage rate is 14.6%, down from 22.9% last season. He has to do his part. He's shooting 40% and has attempted only one free throw. He can attack more aggressively and make himself available when possessions stall.
Mosley also has to give him a more purposeful role. Too much of this offense has looked like players taking turns to manufacture a scoring opportunity. Murphy can help an offense function without holding the ball, but that requires movement, screening, and teammates willing to deliver it when he gets open.
His shooting can force defenders to chase and create openings for others. The Pelicans should be using that ability to organize possessions, rather than leaving his involvement dependent on whether the ball eventuall gets to him.
Jones' defense belongs in the rotation
Jones has averaged just over 17 minutes through two games. He committed three fouls in each, but neither foul count by itself makes such a limited role convincing.
The Pelicans have allowed 71 fourth-quarter points. Against Indiana, Jones watched the closing stretch from the bench while New Orleans lost a game it led entering the fourth.
Jordan Poole and Bennedict Mathurin offer more individual shot creation. Their combined 6-of-24 shooting, including 1-of-12 from three, has not supplied a compelling offensive reason to sacrifice so much of Jones' defense.
Mosley has options to evaluate, and a season's worth of adjustments to make. Giving Jones more minutes and Murphy more offensive responsibility should be part of that process.
Their history has earned them a substantial opportunity together. With the Pelicans already stuggling in areas these two can address, Mosley should give them one.
Their history means something
The case for playing Murphy and Jones together extends beyond their complementary skills.
New Orleans outscored opponents by 4.5 points per 100 possessions in their shared minutes as rookies. That improved to plus-5.2 in 1,258 minutes in 2022-23, and plus-9.2 in 914 minutes during the 49-win season in 2023-24.
The results have gone the other way the last two seasons: minus-2.8 in 2024-25 and minus-3.0 last season. Not even they were immune to the team's decline, and the players around them matter, too.
Williamson makes that history particularly relevant.
Lineups featuring all three were plus-5.7 in 2022-23, plus-4.7 in 2023-24, and plus-1.5 last season. Williamson missed their rookie season, and injuries prevented the trio from playing together in 2024-25.
The most recent advantage wasn't huge, but it came across 566 minutes for a 26-win team. There's enough evidence to justify examining how they work in Mosley's system.
Jones and Williamson have also produced a positive net rating together in each of their four seasons with shared minutes. Murphy's pairing with Williamson was negative in the past two seasons. That distinction reinforces the importance of evaluating the full lineup rather than assuming any two players automatically fit.
Approximately two minutes together this season tells Mosley almost nothing about what the trio can provide.
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