Pelicans Shaking Up West With Big Move

Chrissy Smith • June 30, 2024

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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Pelicans @ Nuggets Takeaways

By Chrissy Smith • October 30, 2025
Team Stats (Pelicans at Nuggets) Final Score: 88-122 Rebounds: 36-57 Assists: 17-40 Steals: 9-5 Blocks: 3-5 Turnovers: 12-14 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Jeremiah Fears, 21; Nikola Jokić, 21 Rebound Leaders: Trey Murphy III, 7; Nikola Jokić, 12 Assist Leaders: Jeremiah Fears, 6; Nikola Jokić, 10 My Player of the Game: Jeremiah Fears Chrissy's Key Takeaways * The starters for this game were Fears, Murphy III, Jones, Zion, and Deandre Jordan. So that was different, and it didn't work at all. * With most of the third quarter over, Zion had five total points in the game. He finished with 11. * The Nuggets went on a 32-4 run in the third quarter. The Pelicans came out very slow to start off the third. * New Orleans went 7-of-33 from the three-point line. * Nikola Jokić had a triple-double. The Pelicans had no answer for him all night. * Do the Pelicans know that the season has started because the majority of the guys out there look like they still think they're playing Summer League. * The problem with this team isn't the talent because they have that. So what's the problem? Coaching, effort, etc.? This has to be fixed ASAP. Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.

Celtics @ Pelicans Takeaways

By Chrissy Smith • October 28, 2025
Team Stats (Celtics at Pelicans) Final Score: 122-90 Rebounds: 54-35 Assists: 25-17 Steals: 5-7 Blocks: 7-0 Turnovers: 11-13 Stat Leaders Scoring Leaders: Anfernee Simons, 25; Jordan Poole, 22 Rebound Leaders: Neemias Queta, 11; Yves Miss, 7 Assist Leaders: Payton Prichard, 8; Trey Murphy, III, 5 My Player of the Game: Jordan Poole Chrissy's Key Takeaways * The first two losses of the season were tough but at least the team looked good. In this game, no one looked fired up to compete except Jordan Poole and Jose Alvarado. * Zion did not play because he's been spending all offseason getting in shape just so he could rest after two games. Makes no sense to me. * Trey Murphy and Herb Jones need to find their spark and stride. These guys have been putting in a ton of work in the offseason but it isn't showing right now. * Willie Green has got to be on a short leash because this 0-3 start feels like the team is just picking up where they left off except this time they're healthy and have all the momentum in the world. * The next three games for the Pelicans will be on the road against Denver, Clippers, and Thunder . Follow @TheKneaux on X, and follow me there too, @SportsChrissy.
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