Pelicans looking to pick up pieces without Dejounte Murray | Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans’ upcoming road trip was going to be difficult even with Dejounte Murray.

A pair of games against the Denver Nuggets on Monday and Wednesday. Then a game at the Sacramento Kings Saturday followed by a trip the following Monday to face the Oklahoma City Thunder, the top team in the Western Conference standings.

Now the trip — and what’s left in one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history — becomes even harder to navigate without Murray, who ruptured his right Achilles tendon in Saturday’s loss to the Boston Celtics. Murray is out for the season.

“It’s extremely difficult when you see a guy who means so much to our team and puts the work in,” said Pelicans’ coach Willie Green. “It’s tough. These are the challenges we’ve been going through pretty much all season.”

Murray will finish the season having played in just 31 games in his initial  season in New Orleans. Brandon Ingram has played in just 18 games. Zion Williamson has played in only 13 games. And Herb Jones, just 20.

That’s three of the Pelicans’ four starters who have missed over half the team’s 49 games.

“It sucks, man,” said guard Jose Alvarado. “We’ve been through so many injuries. I haven’t ever seen this in high school or college. I ain’t ever seen it. It’s sad. Unfortunately, it’s us, right?”

After Murray’s injury in the first quarter Friday, the Pelicans continued to battle against last season’s NBA champions. The game wasn’t decided until Boston’s Jayson Tatum hit the game-winner with 0.2 seconds left. Murray’s injury was motivation.

“At the end of the day, this is a game that you love,” said Trey Murphy. “A lot of time you use this game to escape a lot of stuff. It’s like therapy. … I definitely felt like it was on me to play for him and to give my best to not let him down.”

Murphy finished the night with a season-high 40 points. Green would love nothing more than for Murphy to continue putting up the type of numbers he has the last two games when he has averaged 36 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4 assists.

The Pelicans are 13 games out of 10th place in the Western Conference standings, so any chance of making the playoffs are bleak. Despite that, Green still expects his team to play hard.

“These guys are resilient and high character,” Green said. “They work at it and they care.”

Sandwiched in the middle of this road trip is Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, which could change the roster even more. But for now, the biggest change is the loss of Murray.

“A tragic injury like that is bigger than basketball,” Alvarado said. “We’ve got to push forward and keep positive energy going.”