Why a CJ McCollum trade is the right move for the Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans’ present and future with CJ McCollum
The Pelicans have gotten nice development out of young guys like Herb Jones and Jose Alvarado to go along with the strong play of Josh Hart, Jonas Valanciunas and Brandon Ingram when they’ve all been healthy.
If you add McCollum to that group, the Pelicans could easily make the play-in tournament this season, which would be a step in the right direction and great experience for their young players, most of whom have never been in a playoff environment.
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If Zion Williamson does come back this season (which is looking less and less likely) New Orleans could even make some noise in the playoffs and salvage a nice ending to an otherwise down season.
Going into next season, the Pelicans would be set with a Big 3 of Zion, BI and McCollum to go along with a solid cast of role players.
Veterans like Garrett Temple and Tomas Satoransky have undoubtedly been helpful with the young players at times but it would be nice to get a veteran who can actually play at a high level.
Getting McCollum wouldn’t prohibit the Pels from making future moves, and they will still have a load of draft assets even if they had to give up multiple picks to get him.
It makes the Pelicans better now and sets them up for the future without sacrificing their long-term flexibility, as they could always move McCollum if the fit wasn’t working out.