NBA phenom reveals surprising job he had before making the league

Mar 25, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) reacts after scoring a three point basket against the Los Angeles Clippers during the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

One young NBA player has had quite the come-up over the last few years.

New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III appeared this week on the “Check Ball Show.” During the episode, Murphy revealed the very surprising job that he had before making it to the NBA — he worked at Chick-fil-A for roughly a month.

“One job that I had was Chick-fil-A,” said Murphy. “I worked at Chick-fil-A for about a month. What it was that [made me realize] I had to quit, I was giving a lady a drink one time. She crushed the drink in my hand, spilled it on her shoe, and said, ‘You crushed my drink.'”

Murphy added that he was 16 years old at the time and was able to resist the urge to yell at the customer. But Murphy said that he put in his two weeks notice after that.

Now 24 years old, Murphy was an under-the-radar recruit who began his college career at Rice before transferring to Virginia. Known as a knockdown shooter and a strong defender at 6-foot-8, Murphy would eventually become a first-round pick in the 2021 draft (No. 17 overall). He has since blossomed into one of the best young players on the New Orleans roster, posting career highs last season with 14.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.

As for Murphy’s Chick-fil-A days, everybody has to start somewhere. But that is still a pretty surprising origin story for Murphy and brings to mind this fellow NBA player who has given out Chick-fil-A before too.