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The New Orleans Pelicans had high hopes of making some noise in the postseason after they were competitive with the Los Angeles Lakers in the first play-in contest of the season. However with three minutes remaining in the game, superstar Zion Williamson suffered a strained hamstring, which sidelined him for the remainder of the postseason.
Williamson was phenomenal against the Lakers as Anthony Davis and LeBron James had no answers in containing his ferocious drives to the rim. Due to his injury, the Pelicans lacked their primary offensive option against the top seed Oklahoma City Thunder, which resulted to a frustrating sweep. Despite the incredible versatility and youth of this squad, there are a couple of changes that must be done in the offseason.
NBA pundits have been adamant in wanting Trey Murphy III to evolve as a full-time starter next year, so does that mean Brandon Ingram will be on the move for New Orleans? With changes seemingly inevitable, let’s detail three trade targets the Pelicans can pursue entering the offseason.
Pelicans acquire Deandre Ayton
For someone who did not been receive a ton of praise this season, Deandre Ayton had a wonderful conclusion to his 2023-24 campaign. It was a dreadful start because of all the injuries, but he was garnering up a ton of points when most of his teammates were sitting out already. The Pelicans can utilize him well because it has been evident that they need a legitimate center to pair with Williamson.
Jonas Valanciunas is a decent big man, but they will need to upgrade that slot if they want to reach championship aspirations in the near future. Williamson is not the strongest rebounder despite playing the four so Ayton corralling a bevy of boards a night will be huge for their squad. Moreover, he will balance out their team as they can deal one of their wings to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Ayton.
Dejounte Murray
If the Pelicans front office decide to go on another route, they can pursue a point guard to run their offense. The Atlanta Hawks seem likely to break up their backcourt this year, so New Orleans can pounce on this opportunity to upgrade from CJ McCollum to Dejounte Murray as their starting one.
He will not rack up assists like Tyrese Haliburton, but he will tally a respectable amount and thrive as the orchestrator of this offense.
Adjusting to the two guard in Atlanta was tough for him so sliding back to the one will be beneficial for the longevity of his career. Furthermore, he will have the magnificent scorers like Williamson and Murphy III alongside him on the court. During his San Antonio Spurs days, Murray was a fantastic initiator as he can score on all three levels while balancing it out with being an excellent playmaker.
Kevin Durant
With the Pelicans fanbase aiming for the stars, a trade for Kevin Durant in the offseason will be the best-case scenario for their organization. New Orleans has a plethora of draft capital they can put on the table, along with several young assets they can deal for a sensational Hall of Famer. Since New Orleans is a small city, the serious challenge will be convincing Durant to live in Louisiana.
Moving him for a package centered around Ingram will be the ideal situation as their offense will be unstoppable with Durant and Williamson leading the charge. This will be an improbable outcome for the Pelicans franchise, but anything can happen in this day and age.
More must-reads:
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- The 'No. 1 overall NBA draft pick' quiz
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