With playmaking guard Dejounte Murray sidelined for most of the season recovering from an Achilles injury and role players cycling in and out of the lineup, establishing a clear offensive chain of command has been almost impossible. Fortunately, the now fully healthy New Orleans Pelicans are making progress playing without pressure to close out the season. Zion Williamson, Saddiq Bey, and Trey Murphy III are taking turns seeing what works while James Borrego largely stays out of the way.
It doesn't sound like great coaching at first, but drawing from his years as an assistant with Gregg Popovich's San Antonio Spurs, Borrego knows exactly what a functional hierarchy looks like. The 23-year NBA coaching veteran with two championship rings also knows it doesn’t happen overnight. Williamson, Bey, and Murphy III need reps with Murray to sort everything out themselves.
“I think the best teams in the league, the teams that are chasing titles, winning titles, advancing in the playoffs, they have a clear pecking order in general,” Borrego stressed. “The teams that I've been a part of, it was clearly Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker. Now, that order could have varied at some point throughout a season or different games. Through different seasons or different playoff series, it could vary there.”
Those Spurs teams became the gold standard for continuity and offensive clarity. Duncan often served as the foundational piece inside, while Ginobili and Parker operated as dynamic perimeter creators who could take over stretches when the matchup demanded it.
Unlike those legendary Spurs, however, these Pelicans are still in the developmental stages years after drafting Williamson and Murphy III.
“Our group, we're not quite there yet,” confessed Borrego. “We're trying to figure this out. I think right now the luxury is that we don't really know, and our opponents don't know.”
That uncertainty can be a double-edged sword. While a lack of clarity can sometimes lead to confusing turnovers, Borrego is choosing to view it as a competitive advantage. This work-in-progress roster is learning the ropes with a fluid system that lets the hot hand dictate the offense rather than a rigid star system.
It's working wonders for Murphy III, Bey, and Williamson, judging solely on individual hooping stats. Murray has moved into the starting lineup like an All-Star. The next step is to make the whole more than the sum of the parts. That's on Borrego.
“We're going to find the right matchup; it's my job to help them find that advantage. But the guys are recognizing it, they're trusting it,” Borrego stressed. “You know, recognizing it may not be my time, so let's play through Saddiq here. Let's play through Murf here. Let's play through Zion here. Because I think the great players, when they find rhythm, they want to stay in that rhythm. And the same thing as a team. When you find some rhythm, you want to stay in that rhythm. I think we'll get there at some point. I think the luxury is right now we can play through a number of guys.”
Speaking of unknowns as luxuries at this point in the season is a bit silly. Still, despite a 21-45 record that has left them well out of the playoff picture, the Pelicans have shown signs of life, going 6-4 after the All-Star break. Fans should take that news with a grain of salt, though. Borrego has beaten exactly one top-six seed in 2026 and just three since taking over the job. So, whether that luxury becomes a long-term asset or is just another sign of a team still searching for an identity will depend on how quickly these Pelicans find their version of Duncan, Ginobili, and Parker.
