If the New Orleans Pelicans trade Jrue Holiday, here are four deals we like.
The New Orleans Pelicans have long been in trade rumors involving Jrue Holiday, and even more gasoline was thrown on the fire when it was reported that they were actively shopping him to contenders.
We’ve covered just about every conceivable trade involving Holiday, from the Sixers to the Clippers, from the Bulls to the Suns.
It seems like the writing is finally on the wall, as Zach Lowe discussed in a recent episode of the Lowe Post Podcast, where he speculated on some trades for the Pels’ franchise leader.
Lowe Post distraction podcast: @BobbyMarks42 and I on what the 2020-21 NBA season could look like, Jrue Holiday trades, what the Warriors could do with. No. 2, much more: https://t.co/gam7kdiXGY
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) November 5, 2020
Lowe named a few potential destinations for Jrue Holiday that make sense, but there are others out there as well.
I’ve often said that trading Holiday to a team with cap space makes the most sense, as the Pels could take back less money, clear cap space of their own, which could have a domino effect on free agency.
We took a look at four of the most commonly rumored trades to see which ones were best for the Pelicans.
Three of these teams are contenders who think they can win a title with an addition like Holiday, while one is an up and coming team with cap space who could help the Pelicans build a juggernaut.
Here are the top four Jrue Holiday trades for the New Orleans Pelicans.
New Orleans Pelicans trade rumors: Jrue Holiday to the Denver Nuggets
Denver Nuggets
After making it to the Western Conference Finals, the Nuggets’ window for winning a title is wide open if they can add a third star.
Denver has one of the best duos in the league in Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic but would love a third player to complement them. Denver is the classic team that has depth that doesn’t matter as much in the playoffs, where stars win games.
Here is the most recent trade rumor from the Nuggets:
In this trade, the Pelicans take back a role player in Gary Harris, a high-ceiling prospect in Bol Bol and two first-round picks that are likely to be in the 20’s.
This is the worst of the trade rumors I’ve seen, as it does not guarantee the Pelicans will get an impact player. Harris is fine as a scoring option off the bench, but Bol Bol is completely unproven, as intriguing as he is as a fit next to Zion Williamson.
The picks the Nuggets would be sending back would be in the 20’s, which doesn’t really move the needle.
This one is way too big a risk unless the Nuggets are sending back Michael Porter Jr. as well. If they added him to this deal you can phone it in, if not, the Pelicans can do much better.
New Orleans Pelicans trade rumors: Sending Jrue Holiday to the Brooklyn Nets
Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are another team that thinks they can win a title if they add another piece.
The Nets have both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant coming off injury and Holiday would be a perfect fit as a third banana, as he can cover some of Irving’s deficiencies on the defensive end and offers insurance against an injury.
Zach Lowe said the Nets could trade “LeVert and stuff” for Holiday, so let’s see what that “stuff” might look like.
This is getting closer.
In this trade, the Pels are getting back an exciting young player in Caris LeVert who is just starting to hit his stride.
He’s a 20-point per game scorer who fits well with Brandon Ingram and would add yet another scoring option for the Pels.
The “Stuff” in this case is Spencer Dinwiddie, who immediately becomes the primary backup point guard, and the 19th pick in the draft, which would give the Pels more youth or another pick to use in a trade.
I’d probably like this trade more if Jarrett Allen were also involved, as the Pels could potentially fill three needs with one trade, leaving them to take the best available players in the draft.
This one is interesting but ultimately, the Pels should be able to do better.
New Orleans Pelicans trade rumors: Jrue Holiday to the Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The worst kept secret in the NBA is that the Warriors want to trade the #2 pick in the NBA Draft.
With their “Big 3” coming back, the Warriors are thinking title, not rebuild, so a rookie doesn’t help them as much as someone like Jrue Holiday when it comes to their rapidly closing window.
They don’t have time to develop a rookie, so this trade makes sense:
This trade would make the Pels a lot more versatile defensively and would allow them to add another top-five pick to their roster in addition to their own. They could take LaMelo Ball and be the epicenter of NBA media for a few years or take the best big man and wing available.
Their lineup could look something like this:
PG: Lonzo Ball
SG: Andrew Wiggins, J.J. Redick
SF: Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, Saddiq Bey
PF: Zion Williamson, Nicolo Melli
C: James Wiseman, Jaxson Hayes
That squad is long, versatile and can defend the rim much better than they can now. Losing Holiday on the perimeter wouldn’t hurt as much because Wiggins is a good defender who fits better into Stan Van Gundy’s schemes, same with Saddiq Bey who the Pels could grab at 13.
The only thing I don’t like is the Wiggins’ contract, but that could potentially be avoided by adding a third team like the Knicks to the trade.
These three trades represent what the Pelicans might get back from a contender, but what if they went after a team with cap space?
The final trade is my personal favorite for the Pelicans.
New Orleans Pelicans trade rumors: Jrue Holiday to the Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
The Hawks not only have a ton of cap space but are reportedly shopping the sixth pick in the NBA Draft.
This tells me that they are ready to win now, which makes sense, as they have some good young talent that could be propelled into the Eastern Conference playoffs if they add the right mix of veterans.
Atlanta has the cap space to absorb the Holiday contract without sending equivalent money back, which is why I like them as a trade partner for Holiday.
The first reason I like this trade more than the others is that it sends Holiday out of the Western Conference. Do the Pels really want to have to play Holiday several times a year or face him in the playoffs? Nope.
Also, this trade not only gives them two quality role players who fill needs, they get the 6th pick in the draft and open up some cap space that could lead to another impact free agent.
The Pels would clear about $12 million in cap space that they might be able to use on an impact free agent like Serge Ibaka.
Huerter’s shooting would potentially make J.J. Redick tradeable, and they might be able to move him to the Nets for someone like Taurean Prince.
With both the 6th and 13th picks the Pels could add two potential core pieces to their roster and end up with something like this:
PG: Lonzo Ball/Killian Hayes
SG: Josh Hart/ Kevin Huerter
SF: Brandon Ingram/ Taurean Prince
PF: Zion Williamson/Jalen Smith/Nicolo Melli
C: Serge Ibaka/Dewayne Dedmon/Jaxson Hayes
The Pels could go any number of directions with their picks but I just grabbed two guys who should be available.
This team is deep, versatile, much better defensively and has the size to go to war with the big squads in the Western Conference.
The best trade for the New Orleans Pelicans might not be with a contender, so David Griffin has to scour the league to find the best possible deal.