The New Orleans Pelicans are headed for a franchise teardown, a reset, and a brand-new era. The franchise gave this core one last shot, trading for All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray at the top of the offseason to try to address a major need, hoping that a true playmaker would be able to take this team over the top and make them into serious title contenders.
While this team has needed a floor general for several years, Dejounte wasn't able to solve the Pelicans' worst issue holding them back: injuries. In fact, the injuries got to him first. Now, New Orleans is 5-27, at the bottom of the Western Conference, and committed to rebuilding their team.
The Pelicans were first reported as open to trading everyone on the roster outside of a few select young players they wanted to keep around. That list shockingly didn't contain Zion Williamson, but Jordan Hawkins was eventually given the untouchable designation. Then, they took it a step further, as New Orleans wasn't just making Zion available, but they were actively shopping him to other teams along with Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum. Just because the Pelicans are shopping Zion, BI, and CJ doesn't mean that they'll all be traded this season, though.
Who's most likely to get traded by the Pelicans this season: Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, or CJ McCollum?
3. Least likely: Zion Williamson
Understandably, the news that the Pelicans were open to trading Zion Williamson shocked the NBA world. Those jaws only dropped further to the floor when it was reported that New Orleans was actually actively shopping him to other teams. Zion is incredibly injury-prone and his lack of availability has cost the franchise multiple seasons, but no one expected them to give up on him after just six seasons.
While the team may be actively shopping him, that doesn't mean they're desperate to get rid of him. What I mean is, they're not going to take pennies on the dollar just to shed him. It'll likely still take a king's ransom in order to pry him out of New Orleans.
That's always been the tough part of any theoretical Zion Williamson trade. Any team interested in acquiring him would have to be prepared to give up an absolute haul to the Pelicans while also having to worry about his injury history and health moving forward. He's also a difficult salary to match with a max contract under his belt. Between the financials and his trade stock, it's hard to envision any team putting up an acceptable package for Zion this season, even if the Pelicans are willing to trade him for the first time publicly.
2. Medium likely: CJ McCollum
I actually believe that CJ McCollum will be the most sought after player on the Pelicans' roster ahead of the trade deadline. He's proven himself to be a perfect complement for star-led teams, capable of operating solely off of the ball, orchestrating offense as a secondary playmaker, and generating his own offense as an on-ball weapon when called upon.
There are a number of contending hopefuls that would benefit greatly from adding CJ to their attack. The reason he's not the most likely player to be traded on this list is due to his age and contract. He has two years remaining on his deal including this season, so acquiring him wouldn't be a huge long-term commitment.
However, at 33 years old with a $33 million cap figure this year, trading for him almost has to be the final move for a team looking to flesh out a championship-level roster. Any squad interested in acquiring CJ would have to cobble together a significant package just to match salaries and then they'd have to throw on some sweeteners in order to convince the Pelicans to deal him. That won't be an easy task, but CJ is a worthwhile pursuit for any serious contender needing a little extra offensive juice on the perimeter.
1. Most likely: Brandon Ingram
Brandon Ingram is technically the hardest player to trade out of the three. He's just as expensive as the other two, but he isn't nearly as malleable as CJ nor as promising as Zion. He's a borderline All-Star as a ball-dominant on-ball scorer but makes superstar money. That's part of what has held back the Pelicans during his tenure, and it's also why they've had such a hard time moving him.
Yet, he's the most likely Pelican star to be traded this season. Why? Because they don't have any other choice. The team has indicated that they're looking to teardown the team and rebuild. That pretty much rules out an extension. That leaves New Orleans with two options: trade him before the deadline or let him walk away in free agency for nothing.
Ingram has to be traded this year, because they don't have any other choice, even if it's for considerably less than his market value would dictate.