New Orleans Pelicans: A hypothetical Trey Lyles trade worth making

The New Orleans Pelicans can entice the San Antonio Spurs with a future first-round pick, and a player who might have some potential left

Why the Spurs make the trade

It’s not often that the San Antonio Spurs make trades or amendments to their team mid-season, but I believe they might make an exception in this deal.

Yes, the Spurs are in the playoff hunt, but I believe they’re also thinking about their future. Trey Lyles has been a solid rotational piece for the Spurs since last season, but I don’t believe he’s integral to their playoff hopes or future.

Now you might argue that the Spurs wouldn’t want to send Lyles to a division foe also hunting for the playoffs, but this deal might do the trick because Nicolo Melli could be a direct swap with Lyles.

I say that because even though Melli has struggled with the Pelicans, I think the Spurs could get him to flourish. The Spurs culture is so unique and focuses on welcoming international players and coaches. In that case, Melli could thrive in San Antonio as a poor man’s Davis Bertans, which is what the Pelicans hoped he’d be.

Additionally, the Spurs would then have a future first-round pick that could become a valuable asset. That pick could help the Spurs’ excellent scouting team find another great player, or it could be used in a trade down the line.

Now, let’s look at how Trey Lyles would fit with the New Orleans Pelicans.