Just when it seemed as though the New Orleans Pelicans were a non-factor in the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes, the Milwaukee Bucks appear to be pulling them in. Milwaukee is understandably surveying the landscape after the blockbuster report that Antetokounmpo is open to being traded.
The Pelicans don't appear to be in the running to acquire Antetokounmpo, but they may be asked to help facilitate a trade with another team.
New Orleans will enter the 2025 offseason with a need for drastic change at almost every level of the organization. It's already hired a new general manager, and will now look to rebound from an injury-plagued 2024-25 campaign during which it won just 21 games—a feat Milwaukee may help it achieve.
According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, the Bucks are expected to try to include either New Orleans or the Portland Trail Blazers as a third team in a potential Antetokounmpo trade.
"Anticipation is already building about the Bucks trying to include either New Orleans or Portland in a theoretical Giannis trade to try to regain some of their draft capital."
That could provide the Pelicans with a unique opportunity to make an unexpected improvement to their long-term outlook.
Bucks eyeing Pelicans as third team in potential Giannis trade
In the scenario Fischer outlined, the Pelicans would be sending a first-round draft pick to the Bucks. Based on the wording of the report, it seems Milwaukee is looking to offset New Orleans' right to swap for the more favorable pick between the two sides in both 2026 and 2027.
That seems to signal an understanding on Milwaukee's part that it could be headed toward extraordinary lottery odds after trading Antetokounmpo.
As such, the Pelicans effectively cancelling the aforementioned swap rights would essentially equate to punting the opportunity to acquire Milwaukee's expected lottery picks in each of the next two seasons. Under that set of circumstances, the pot would need to be sweetened beyond belief for New Orleans to justify essentially canceling the right to swap first-round picks with Milwaukee.
It's hard to imagine a scenario in which the Pelicans would agree to such a development, but it's worth considering how much it could gain in the process.
Offload Dejounte Murray or potentially land two lottery picks?
Given how much New Orleans would be asked to give up, it could push for Milwaukee to take back Dejounte Murray in a potential trade. Murray is an excellent player, but he ruptured his Achilles tendon in 2024-25, will likely miss a decent portion of the 2025-26 season, and has three years and nearly $97 million remaining on his contract.
New Orleans would also have an opportunity to acquire a player who makes a similar salary in the trade, with the price point inherently suggesting an intriguing level of talent.
Regardless of how a potential trade is structured, the Pelicans should seriously consider this unexpected opportunity to improve. It's difficult to imagine a more valuable asset than being able to swap picks with an Antetokounmpo-less Bucks in 2026 and 2027, but if it's out there, it's worth exploring.
New Orleans would hold all of the leverage in potential negotiations with Milwaukee and a third team, and it should milk that opportunity for everything it's worth.