Would the Pelicans trade Brandon Ingram for Paul George?
Why the Pelicans should not trade Brandon Ingram for Paul George
You don’t trade away 23-year-old All-Stars who averages 24 points a game unless you are prepared to feel some regret in a few years.
Ingram and Paul have nearly identical statistics (Paul is slightly ahead in some categories) but Ingram is significantly younger and makes $8 million less per season than Paul.
light. Related Story. Nets' free agent Bruce Brown could help the defense
Yes, Paul is the better defender (by far) but Ingram could eventually get there himself, which means he’d more or less be Paul George.
If Ingram can improve his defense, he’ll be one of the top wings in the game, as he is already an elite scorer who is going to get better.
The Pelicans have two under-25 All-Stars and you don’t break that up for a 30-year-old, even if he is better now.
Paul George would likely make the Pelicans better now, but what about two or three years from now? If Ingram went on to be an All-NBA player for the Clippers when Paul was 33-years-old, Pels’ fans would be tearing their hair out.
But what if Ingram is what he is? Would you trade him now if you knew he wasn’t going to get significantly better?