The New Orleans Pelicans sit at 15-41 and 14th in the Western Conference following the All-Star break, and with no control over their 2026 first-round pick, it's hard to remain positive. So why not revisit a painful what-if?
The idea comes from a recent episode of Carmelo Anthony's podcast "7PM in Brooklyn", where he invited former Pelicans center DeMarcus Cousins on as a guest. The two talked about plenty of different things, like Team USA basketball and Kobe Bryant, but the one thing that really stood out was the discussion about Melo potentially joining New Orleans for the 2017-18 season.
Anthony mentioned that before he was traded from New York to Oklahoma City, the Pelicans had expressed interest and even gave him a Pelicans jersey during recruitment talks. Ultimately, the team waited too long, and Sam Presti’s plan to build a contender led Anthony to join the Oklahoma City Thunder.
"I did have a Pelicans jersey, that was the recruiting pitch."
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) February 16, 2026
Melo, Boogie Cousins, AND Anthony Davis nearly formed the craziest big 3 in New Orleans🤯 @Xfinity pic.twitter.com/NpIZvQJomT
That season, the Pelicans won 48 games and secured the sixth seed in the West, but fell short in the playoffs after Cousins suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in January.
The team that never was
Assuming things were different, and New Orleans acquired Melo, the Pelicans would've had a team built to potentially dethrone the Kevin Durant-led Golden State Warriors. The Warriors' one roster flaw during those runs was the center position.
Picture this lineup: prime Cousins, averaging 25+ points and 12+ rebounds, paired with Anthony Davis, who finished as a top-three candidate in both MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. Already a defensive problem for Golden State, the team would have gained a true third offensive option in Melo, whose floor spacing would have opened up the court.
The backcourt would have featured Rajon Rondo, one of the league’s best offensive conductors at the time, averaging eight points and eight assists per game, alongside lockdown perimeter guard Jrue Holiday, who averaged 19 points per game and earned All-Defensive First Team that season. Surrounding them with reliable role players like E’Twaun Moore and Darius Miller, and a late-season steal in Nikola Mirotic, the Pelicans could have had a team built to dethrone the Warriors in the West.
Melo’s presence might have even prevented Cousins’ Achilles injury by having another scorer to share the offensive load—Boogie would have been fresher and healthier for the postseason.
The trio of Melo–Davis–Boogie would have certainly made noise in the Western Conference, but it's just another hypothetical. While scenarios like this are fun to imagine, they also serve as a stark reminder of just how far the Pelicans have fallen since the Davis era ended and the Zion era began.