The New Orleans Pelicans are stuck in no-man's land in the NBA landscape. They saw slight improvement from 2024-25 to 2025-26 as they went from 21 wins to 26 wins, but the franchise seems light years away from true contention. The Pelicans hired Joe Dumars as Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations in April of 2025, but Dumars has yet to make any earth-shattering moves.
One name that has consistently been brought up in trade rumors over the past few months is Trey Murphy III, who led the Pelicans in scoring this past season at 21.5 points per game. Below, we will look at the latest trade rumors involving Murphy.
Trey Murphy to Boston Celtics trade rumors
Even before Jaylen Brown was openly on the trading block as Brad Stevens attempted to pry Giannis Antetokounmpo from Milwaukee, the Celtics were rumored to have great interest in acquiring Murphy from the Pelicans.
A new layer of intrigue regarding a potential Murphy to the Celtics trade occurred this week as it was reported by Sam Amick, of The Athletic, that the Celtics are asking for four first round picks in a trade for Brown.
Shortly after that report, Yahoo Sports reporter Kevin O’Connor reported that the Pelicans are asking for three first round picks in exchange for the sharp-shooting Murphy.
The Portland Trail Blazers are reportedly the front-runner to acquire Brown in a trade.
It’s entirely possible that a three-way trade is brewing between the Celtics, Pelicans, and Trail Blazers in which Murphy lands in Boston, Brown lands in Portland, and the Pelicans get a cache of draft picks.
Trey Murphy to Warriors trade rumors
The Warriors are gearing up for one last title run in the Steph Curry era as they are bringing back veterans Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford on short-term deals. Golden State is still clearly one big piece away from getting back into the mix with the big boys of the Western Conference, however, and they have long coveted Murphy.
HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto reported that the Warriors discussed trade concepts involving the No. 11 overall pick with the Pelicans before the Draft. There were also reports around this past February’s trade deadline that Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr was looking to land Murphy in a trade centered around Jonathan Kuminga and future first round picks. Kuminga was traded ahead of the trade deadline, but to the Hawks in a deal that had Porzingis shipped to Golden State.
The Warriors still have all of their first round picks available for the next seven years. An early 2030s first rounder from Golden State would be mighty appealing to a team like the Pelicans as Curry will likely be retired in the early 2030s and the Warriors will likely be in the middle of a full rebuild.
Trey Murphy to Detroit Pistons trade rumors
This one has gotten more interesting in the past few days as it now looks like a real possibility that restricted free agent Jalen Duren will leave Detroit. According to Amick, Duren was “underwhelmed” by the Pistons initial contract offer this summer.
Duren is still just 22-years-old and would give the Pelicans the starting center they’ve long coveted.
Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon is well stocked with future first round draft picks to help facilitate a potential sign-and-trade scenario involving Duren.
Murphy would give the Pistons a solid co-star to place alongside Cade Cunningham.
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