It feels like all summer, the New Orleans Pelicans have been under a microscope for every little move they've made or not made. When Joe Dumars took over, many expected him to press the big red button and reset things by trading away Zion Williamson. The exact opposite has happened. Dumars has remained committed and continues to challenge Zion to be better every single day.
That's why an ESPN article titled: "NBA Summer Forecast 2025-26: Turnarounds, turbulent teams and the biggest questions" completely caught me off guard. In this article, the ESPN staff was polled about a series of questions about this upcoming NBA season. One of the questions was who would be the next superstar to request a trade? The most common answer was Zion Williamson.
Which, quite frankly, makes zero sense to me. You mean to tell the 25-year-old who has a great relationship with his front office and has never openly been disgruntled, is just going to ask out? I must be missing something.
The article suggests that Z may ask out because the Pelicans are "stuck in neutral". The main reason New Orleans is stuck in neutral is that Williamson has been consistently hurt. Every year, the front office has put talent around him and has only really failed because he hasn't stayed healthy, which is something he understands.
In an era where superstars are constantly requesting trades or making demands to the front office, it's weird to me that Zion would be the name "experts" picked most likely to ask out. We've never heard any real reports that he was unhappy in New Orleans or didn't want to be there.
The timing of these ESPN results is even funnier since Joe Dumars, in a recent media appearance, said Zion views New Orleans as home.
It's more likely the Pelicans decide to trade Zion then him requesting a trade
During the offseason, Dumars has made moves that position the Pelicans to be able to move on if they have to trade Williamson. By extending Herb Jones, already having Trey Murphy locked up, and selecting two rookies in the lottery, New Orleans has a stacked young core without Williamson.
Dumars has put together the most complete team we've ever seen during the Williamson era in New Orleans. And if the Pelicans suffer another down season in 2025-26, it'll be because Zion didn't play more than 60 games, putting him in no position to make any trade demands.
If Williamson has another injury-riddled year, he very well could be traded by the 2026 trade deadline, but it won't be because he requested a trade. Instead, it'll be Joe Dumars deciding after 7 years to pull the plug on the Zion Williamson experience in New Orleans.