Dejounte Murray Requests Trade From Pelicans as Representatives Inform Team

New Orleans Pelicans All-Star guard Dejounte Murray wants to leave the team. On Friday, his representatives at Klutch Sports informed the Pelicans of his request to be traded.

The Pelicans said in a statement, 'Today, Dejounte Murray's representatives informed us of his request to be traded.' The team added, 'We will evaluate potential trade opportunities that are in the best interest of our organization.'

Murray, 30, was ruled out on Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies because of a left ankle sprain. Pelicans coach Jamahl Mosley said Murray was not at the Smoothie King Center either. 'He's not in the building, from what I've been told,' Mosley said.

The Pelicans acquired Murray in a June 2024 trade with the Atlanta Hawks. In that deal, New Orleans gave up two first-round picks, Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance Jr. and E.J. Liddell.

David Griffin, then the Pelicans' executive vice president of basketball operations, viewed Murray as a defender and playmaker who could provide ball-handling help for Zion Williamson. But according to the report, Murray never approached the play that had earned him All-Star honors in 2022 during his time in New Orleans.

Murray's time in New Orleans has been dogged by injuries. He broke his hand in the 2024 season opener, and then suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in January 2025.

Over the last three seasons, Murray has played just 54 games with New Orleans, averaging 16.6 points, 6.6 assists and 5.9 rebounds. The Pelicans have gone 1-8 with him in the lineup.

Murray's salary is reportedly $32.8 million this season. He has a player option for $30.8 million next season.

Murray recently made his frustrations with the team clear through several critical social media posts. After one reporter mentioned the Pelicans were 3-0 without him in the lineup, Murray wrote back that, from what was going on inside, it sounded like someone had put the reporter up to saying it, and that 'the sabotage is real.' The post was deleted shortly after.

The timing of Murray's trade request drew scrutiny, as it surfaced while the Pelicans were on a four-game losing streak. Mosley, however, said his focus remained on the players available to him and on maintaining the team's standards.

Mosley said how well the team plays is very important to him and that the standard has to be kept up. The first couple of games did not go in the win column, he said, but the way the team played showed a lot of good things, while the last three games were not a representation of the organization or the city; his focus now is on getting back to that earlier style of basketball.