Pelicans Shaking Up West With Big Move
There's a lot of reasons sports fans from New Orleans hate on all-things Atlanta, but this week, we've finally got a reason to smile.
The New Orleans Pelicans made a trade with the Atlanta Hawks to acquire Dejounte Murray in exchange for Pelicans C Larry Nance, SG Dyson Daniels, a 2025 first-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick, per ESPN. This is a BIG WIN for the Pelicans as all the fans expected Brandon Ingram to have to be part of a trade like this. So knowing that we still have Ingram to use in a trade to get a starting center, is great news.
Murray had a very good season with the Hawks last year. He shot 46 percent from the field, and 36 percent from behind the arc. Also, he's an 80 percent free-throw shooter thank God because we all know how much the Pels struggled from the charity stripe this year. He averaged 22.5 points per game, 6.4 assists, and 1.4 steals all last season. If he does the same numbers this year, he will be a HUGE help to New Orleans in the upcoming season.
So what does this mean for Ingram? Well, we all thought he would be the first to be traded so it does appear that David Griffin knows more than all of us fans, which is really surprising since some fans seem to think they already know it all about this organization.
With that being said, the Pelicans currently don't have a legit center on the team. Jonas Valanciunas is a free agent, and with Nance being traded, all that leaves is Zion Williamson (who is not a 5), the recently drafted rookie Yves Missi, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. Realistically, Missi won't be ready to be a starter this season, and while we all love Robinson-Earl, he is a third-string player and not the type of center we need.
So what do the Pelicans do? There are many possibilities, but it does look like Ingram will be part of whatever package the Pelicans put together to hopefully get the missing piece this team is needing to finally make a deep run into the playoffs.
If Ingram leaves, he will be missed as he's been an important part of New Orleans Pelicans basketball. We will also miss Nance and Dyson as they have been more than just role players for this team, but key parts in last season's success.
The NBA free agency is just heating up so stayed tuned for more insights on the Pelicans as they continue to make moves to strengthen their team.
(Follow me on X at @SportsChrissy)
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