The New Orleans Pelicans are in purgatory right now, only two games back of the final play-in spot, but not real playoff contenders without Zion Williamson.
There has been speculation that the Pelicans will be buyers at the trade deadline, and if they wanted to add talent, they certainly have the right combination of expiring contracts, young talent and draft assets to do it.
But with a 17-28 record, their time is running out to make a real run at the playoffs, so making a trade just to make one is probably not a smart move and there are definitely some guys they should avoid.
I don’t think David Griffin and the New Orleans Pelicans will be involved in any blockbusters, but you never know, as Griffin runs a pretty tight ship when it comes to leaking rumors and the Pels are good at not tipping their hand.
There are some guys I would definitely avoid, ranging from the obvious to a couple that have been mentioned as possibilities for the New Orleans Pelicans.
Let’s take look at five of them, starting with the obvious.
Trade targets the New Orleans Pelicans should avoid
The Obvious
Russell Westbrook and John Wall
Let’s start with the obvious choices, Westbrook and Wall, who are two of the most polarizing players in the league and represent the NBA’s two worst contracts.
The Lakers would love nothing more than to undo the trade they made to get Westbrook, as he has regressed, his bad habits (turnovers and bad shots) have gotten worse and they are on the hook for his $47 million option next season as well.
Same with Wall, who hasn’t even played this season for whatever reason, and is also due a hefty $47 million in next one, a precautionary tale for any team looking to sign an aging and mercurial point guard to a super max deal.
These two are not only on the worst contracts in the NBA, but have been culture killers pretty much everywhere they’ve been. It’s crazy how much teams have traded to get these two guys over the years and the Lakers in particular have to be wondering what their team and record might look like right now if they had never made that trade. (pardon me for a second while I laugh heartily at LA: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!)