Trey Murphy III is from Durham and plays for the New Orleans Pelicans. On Friday, he had his jersey retired at his alma mater, Cary Academy.
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The private school held a pep rally and ceremony for the class of 2018 graduate.
Murphy's parents, extended family, and friends all joined the fun as he became the first Cary Academy grad to have a jersey retired at the school.
Ahead of the big moment, Murphy had an inspirational message for young people in the Triangle.
"The biggest thing for me is I think I want to just pass on to the youth really is try to inspire those kids, show that that they can do it," Murphy told ABC11. "They can come from Cary Academy and make it to the NBA."
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After Cary Academy, Murphy played at Rice University from 2018 to 2020 before transferring to Virginia. He played the 2020-21 season with the Cavaliers and was then taken in the first round of the NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies with the 17th overall pick.
He never played for the Grizzlies, who traded him to the Pelicans. Now in his third season, the forward is averaging 12.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.
"It's possible. And if they want to do something else with their life, and want to be you know, a big-time doctor, whatever, you can do that," Murphy added. "Stick with the process and just believe in yourself."