After literal months of speculation — or possibly even years, depending on the method of scoring — the New Orleans Pelicans finally moved Brandon Ingram ahead of the 2024-25 NBA season's trade deadline. They wound up sending him to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for Bruce Brown Jr., Kelly Olynyk, a 2026 top-four protected first-round pick via the Indiana Pacers, and a 2031 second-round selection.
When the news broke, a major portion of the Pelicans' fanbase broke out in jubilation, understandably so. It wasn't so much the return that New Orleans received that they were celebrating. If anything, the package they got back for Ingram leans on the weaker side for a career 20-point scorer just entering his prime at 27 years old.
It was the fact that this trade was a long-awaited finish to an infuriating and seemingly never-ending saga between the team and Ingram. Not only did it draw a close to the contract disputes with BI and all of this season's trade speculations surrounding New Orleans, but it was also the inevitable finale of the mismatched and doomed pairing between him and Zion Williamson. So, even though the trade was ultimately a bit underwhelming, an exhale of collective relief washed over NOLA after Brandon Ingram was moved to the Raptors. However, the aftermath of the deal has revealed an understated but ugly side of the NBA.
Trading Brandon Ingram was the right move for the Pelicans, but he'll be missed in New Orleans
Over the past six years, the Pelicans and their fans have seen the ceiling on the Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram pairing. It became clear to anyone paying attention that there was no way to optimize both players due to their overlapping strengths and weaknesses. Holding onto BI any longer would have only been delaying the inevitable. With Ingram demanding an incredibly handsome extension after this season, New Orleans made the right move by trading him this year.
From an outside perspective, it's easy to make those claims and grade this deal purely from a transactional perspective. The Pelicans gave up a good, not great, player on an expiring contract that they had no interest in re-signing and got two veterans on short-term deals and draft capital in return. It wasn't a haul, but New Orleans got fair value all things considered.
Ultimately, the NBA is an entertainment product and these athletes are paid millions of dollars to play a game. That said, these players are often viewed solely through a championship-or-bust lens which can lead to them becoming dehumanized in the eyes of the public.
Brandon Ingram might not have been the perfect costar for Zion which made him a suboptimal piece for the Pelicans, but he gave six years of his life, the bulk of his 20s, to New Orleans. It's easy for fans, analysts, and pundits to look at Ingram next to Zion, Trey Murphy III, and Herb Jones and say that the fit is awkward and they need to be broken up, but BI has spent the half-decade building a legitimate brotherhood with these guys, evidenced by his heartwrenching Instagram stories.
Brandon Ingram just dropped a bunch of pictures on his IG story. 🥲 pic.twitter.com/H4qNssoHKQ
— Brady (@sideshowbrady) February 6, 2025
No, Ingram never won a championship with the Pelicans. He didn't even win a single playoff series. But, he still gave New Orleans plenty to cheer about. This trade could very well prove to be the best move for both Brandon Ingram and the Pelicans but that doesn't mean BI and the fans still can't feel sad about it.