At last, there is good news around the Virginia Cavaliers basketball program. Former Wahoo Trey Murphy III has agreed to a four-year, $112 million rookie contract extension with the New Orleans Pelicans. This will put him under contract until 2028.
After a standout season at UVA and one year developing on the bench in the NBA, Murphy became a fairly regular starter for the Pelicans. Over the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, he averaged 14.6 points and shot 39.5% from three point range.
“Three and D” has become the best way to make a living as a role player in the NBA, and it has given Murphy the opportunity to be a major part of the core built around Zion Williamson. Even with a hamstring injury suffered in training camp that will likely cause Murphy to miss the beginning portion of the 2024-25 season, GM Bryson Graham sees tons of future value in the sharpshooter.
The Pelicans franchise continues to make strides as well. Over Murphy’s three seasons in NOLA, they have improved their win totals from 36 to 42 to 49, which is their highest since 2008-09. This offseason, the Pelicans also added Dejounte Murray, who fills a glaring need in their backcourt as a ball-handler and playmaker. Of course, this involved getting rid of their stretch big Larry Nance, which only further emphasized the front office’s belief in Murphy.
Overall, Tony Bennett’s program has been a factory for these valuable “Three and D” prototypes. Joe Harris, Sam Hauser, De’Andre Hunter, and to a certain extent Malcolm Brogdon (albeit for much of his career he provided a lot more) are some more examples.
Murphy’s $28 million average annual value makes him the highest paid Virginia basketball alumnus ever. Other recent contract extensions include:
- Brogdon earning $22.5 million over one year with Portland
- Hauser earning $45 million over four years ($11.2 AAV) with Boston
- Hunter earning a $95 million over four years ($23.8 AAV) with Atlanta
