The NBA is full of many superstar talents, many of which have been on show during the All-Star weekend.
While the likes of LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant have been the face of the league for a hot minute some new stars are starting to take over.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the MVP frontrunner this season while players such as Antony Edwards and GOAT-linked Victor Wembanyama are making their marks.
With these stars often claiming the limelight across the league many get overlooked despite their displays, Pelicans star Trey Murphy has now revealed his top five ‘underappreciated’ NBA stars.
The Pelicans are struggling at the wrong end of the Western Conference but Murphy still managed to find a spot for one of his teammates.
While many may think about Zion Williamson he named CJ McCollum as his underappreciated star teammate.
Despite now being 33, one of the older members of the Pelicans, McCollum is still more than proving his worth to the team. The star averages 22-3-3 this year and recently dropped a 50-point performance in the team’s win over the Washington Wizards.
Speaking on the Kevin O’Connor show Murphy said: “I’m gonna show some love to my guy CJ McCollum. I think he’s underappreciated given what year it is in his career. He’s getting old but he’s super professional. He goes in every day and does his job and that’s the biggest thing he’s been there working.”
While it was expected that Murphy would name at least one of his teammates, his other four picks all came from outside of the Pelicans.
Portland Trail Blazers star Toumani Camara was Murphy’s first name. The Belgian joined the league in 2023 following his second-round draft selection. The 24-year-old averages 10-5-2 this season.
Other notable names included Kings’ Domantas Sabonis, Piston’s Malik Beasley and Maverick’s Daniel Gafford, who is currently out with injury.
New Kings star Zach Lavine received a special mention from Murphy, saying: “I’d say Zach LaVine, especially with his time with the Bulls this year. He was hooping and I don’t think people were really taking too much attention to it because they weren’t winning enough.
“He was averaging really high 20s with great splits and elite efficiency and was literally doing everything offensivley and he’s figuring himself out with the Kings as well.”
Murphy humbly kept himself out of the list but he has certainly been an important part of a Pelicans team that has struggled this season.
