New Orleans Pelicans: Trading for Harden or Westbrook is a mistake

The New Orleans Pelicans should avoid giving up assets for either James Harden or Russell Westbrook of the Houston Rockets

Just like clockwork, the NBA Draft and free agency begin to loom closer, and NBA stars express their desires to move across the league. In past seasons, this annual superstar carrousel would be just background noise for the New Orleans Pelicans, but not this season.

With a growing young core, a playoff-tested head coach, and a heaping load of draft picks, the Pelicans are in a position this year to actually make a move on these dangling stars. In fact, it’s their due diligence to at least investigate every potential star available and see what their cost is, and how they would fit the team. That’s why I could see the team assessing the Houston Rockets’ current situation.

For those of you wondering what that situation is thanks to the swift news cycle of the NBA, I’ll give it to you briefly. Last night, the Atheltic’s Shams Charania started a whirlwind by tweeting this:

Yup, you read it right, after just one season with the Houston Rockets, Russell Westbrook wants out. This has caused many fans to think that Westbrook’s co-star James Harden wants to get out of Houston to thanks to recent reports from ESPN. 

So, yes both former MVPs could be on their way out of Houston, and yes the New Orleans Pelicans could acquire one of them. Heck, they could acquire both of them if they really wanted, but they shouldn’t. They shouldn’t go near James Harden or Russell Westbrook with a 30-foot pole even, and here’s why.

Why the New Orleans Pelicans should avoid any deals for James Harden and Russell Westbrook

I’ll preface this by saying, that I don’t think the New Orleans Pelicans are interested in either player, which is great, but I do believe that the Rockets could seek out the Pelicans. Why would they seek out a division rival? Because the Pelicans have the cheap young talent and draft picks that Houston would need to reset their roster for the future.

Well, what if the Rockets only wants a small package for one of their stars? Surely the Pelicans would have to consider it then, right? Again, yes in theory but if Houston is asking for a small package for a former MVP then that’s a red flag. That means that no one else in the league wants to shell out serious assets for them and Houston is desperate to get something they could work with.

The biggest reason though why I wouldn’t go near those two players if I’m the Pelicans, and why I don’t think they will, is simply because they aren’t winning players. James Harden and Russell Westbrook are two stars whose history shows that they need to be on a team-centered around them where they get the ball. If not, then they need to play on a team that has other high profile stars.

That’s clearly the opposite of what the Pelicans are building right now. With a young core and a head coach who runs a team-orientated system, the Pelicans are committed to growing their team in the Golden State Warriors model. Adding Harden or Westbrook completely ruins that.

Add in that to make a deal for either player work financially, the Pelicans would have to trade not just Jrue Holiday but Brandon Ingram too, and there’s no way the Pelicans trade Ingram right now. Even fans who love both of Houston’s stars wouldn’t trade Brandon Ingram for them.

If that’s not enough reasoning for you still, I’ll give you this one too. Harden and Westbrook want to play with other stars in big markets, they don’t want to join the Pelicans and play in the smaller New Orleans market. Even if Zion Williams is a star in the making, those players want to play with guys who are in their age range and ready to contend now.

There’s just no way to make sense of adding James Harden or Russell Westbrook to the New Orleans Pelicans roster, so if the Houston Rockets decided to call, the team should answer and listen to know about what’s going on in the league, and then swiftly hang up the phone.