Ever since the Pelicans traded away Dyson Daniels as part of the Dejounte Murray trade package, a lot of fans are worried about trading any of the Pelicans' young talent. It was obvious with how easy Daniels broke out that he has always been an extremely talented guard, especially on the defensive end, and that the Pelicans just never put him in a place to be successful.
This brings me to Jordan Hawkins, who, so far in his first two years in the NBA, has shown flashes of developing into an elite shooter but has yet to break out.
His inability to establish himself as a key part of this team's core has made me open to the idea of Joe Dumars trading Hawkins. Although many people still see a ton of potential in Hawkins and may worry that a new situation could help lead to a repeat of what happened with Dyson Daniels.
The fear of Hawkins breaking out on a different team shouldn't be a reason to hold onto him. If he isn't producing for the Pelicans, they can't afford to wait and hope for a breakout, just because they are afraid he'll go to another team and make them look foolish. This team's goal is to make the playoffs, and they are going to need all hands on deck to do that.
Teams may over value Hawkins in trades because of the Pelicans draft history
The NBA media loves to not give the Pelicans credit for anything, but one thing they can't take away from is that over the past 6 years, this organization has drafted extremely well.
Zion Williamson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker were both studs in 2019. In 2021, Trey Murphy was selected in the mid-first round, and Herb Jones was selected in the early second round, both of whom are now some of the league's best two-way wings. Dyson Daniels at 8th in 2022, as well as Karlo Matković at 52, and then in 2023, Jordan Hawkins.
Joe Dumars could now use the fact that Bryson Graham and David Griffin drafted so well during their time running the Pelicans to his advantage. The issue with Dyson Daniels was never skill, but rather poor development and a lack of minutes. So who's to say that can't be the same for Jordan Hawkins?
Opposing GMs may love the idea of this, and because Hawkins is still just 23, may see him as a first-round pick-level asset in trade conversations. This could help Dumars turn Hawkins into an extremely valuable win-now player if they decide to part ways with him.