Much has been said about the changes that the The New Orleans Pelicans have undergone this offseason. They were praised for their acquisition of guard Dejounte Murray in a trade with the Atlanta Hawksbecause it will make the team more dynamic at both ends of the pitch.
While the addition of Murray is exciting, the Pelicans have some holes to fill on the roster.
They have a huge hole at center to fill after Jonas Valanciunas left as a free agent and Larry Nance Jr. was part of the package sent to the Hawks. Those are two rotation players who will need to be replaced.
One loss that doesn’t get as much attention as it should is the departure of Naji Marshall. A versatile winger, Marshall was a key part of Willie Green’s rotation, playing in 66 games last season and averaging 19 minutes per game.
His numbers aren’t exactly eye-popping, as he averaged 7.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. His efficiency was excellent, as he shot a career-high 46.3 percent from the field and 38.7 percent from three-point range.
It will be a great addition to the The Dallas Mavericks He should be a $30 million rotation player, as his skillset fits perfectly with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. A quintessential 3-and-D player, he should take over for Derrick Jones Jr., who signed a three-year, $30 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers.
While Marshall’s real-life impact is evident, he received no respect from the people giving ratings in NBA 2K25. On Bleacher ReportGrant Hughes highlighted the most insulting mark for a player on each team.
For the Mavericks, it was Marshall’s surprisingly low defensive rating that was given to this player. He received a 64, which is simply unacceptable for a player who played at such a level last season.
To be in the 91st percentile On defense, the Plus/Minus rating is enough to warrant a higher grade. As is the fact that one of his teammates, not exactly known for his defense, is rated higher.
“It makes sense that Naji Marshall is so vastly underrated on defense, as there are no easy categories to categorize into a skill set defined by aggression and toughness. But we should at least agree that he deserves to be rated higher than teammate Luka Dončić on defense,” Hughes wrote.
There are a lot of things the star point guard does well, but positioning himself on defense is usually not one of them. Receiving what would be considered a failing grade in some respects is certainly disappointing.
The way New Orleans deployed Marshall last season was enough to warrant a defensive rating in the low 80s. The Pelicans have consistently been one of the strongest defensive teams in the NBA under Green, and the versatile wing was a big reason why.
