New Orleans Pelicans’ Trade Target: Lauri Markkanen

The Chicago Bulls’ talented forward may want out of the Windy City, but does he make sense for the New Orleans Pelicans? Let’s take a look.

Every season there are disgruntled players who want out of their current situation. These are the types of guys the New Orleans Pelicans may be able to target in a trade.

When a team has an unhappy player they lose all leverage, which is why most teams try to keep this information secret before attempting to make a trade.

Lauri Markkanen of the Bulls became the most recent player to express his dissatisfaction with the direction of his team.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Markkanen said that he wants out if the Bulls organization cannot get their act together.

This isn’t shocking, as the Bulls have had one of the most dysfunctional organizations since, well, since Michael Jordan left.

The Bulls’ front office has gotten more benefit of the doubt than any managers in history, and there is no doubt that John Paxson would have been fired long ago if he worked for some other organizations.

With the Bulls in purgatory as they finally search for a new front office, players like Markkanen are starting to wonder if they will ever straighten things out.

The front office turmoil, coupled with the fact that coach Jim Boylen clearly lost his team, means that there might be some unhappy Bulls on the trading block.

Markkanen has regressed under Boylen, who can’t seem to find a way to pair the talented seven-footer with Zach LaVine.

Since these two were supposed to be the building blocks, one of them might have to go if the Bulls can’t make it work.

Markkanen is an intriguing player for the New Orleans Pelicans, as he fits the profile of what they need, but may come at too high a cost for what amounts to one guaranteed year.

Let’s take a look at Markkanen’s strengths, weaknesses and what a trade to the New Orleans Pelicans might look like.