The Kevin Durant Saga
In recent days, the Kevin Durant trade chatter has heated back up. Partly in so, because a report was released that Durant sat down with team owner Joe Tsai, and flat out told him “it's them or me”, paraphrasing of course. The them in question are GM Sean Marks and HC Steve Nash.
There are many things to unpack when it comes to this situation, but the main thing that jumps out to me is that these reports are almost always followed up with speculation surrounding where he will go. The media continues to discuss the Pelicans as not only a possible destination, but also interested in the future Hall of Famer.
Before we dive into whether the Pelicans should actually trade for Durant, it should be mentioned that the fact the Pelicans are even in the conversation is major news. The Pelicans are one of the brightest up and coming teams, viewed as being on the cusp of being a championship contender, with a higher buzz than we have seen, maybe ever. The combination of young, promising talent, and draft picks that Griffin and Langdon have amassed will have this team mentioned in just about ANY trade discussions or speculations that pop up. This in itself is a win. It also leads to the suggestion that moving forward you should take just about any report with a grain of salt. When it comes to player movement in the NBA, there is always a nasty behind the scenes game being played, using false reports and “leaks” to drive up or kill value for the parties involved. Of course, the Pelicans will be mentioned, because they have the best POTENTIAL offer to place on the table.
With that being said, should the New Orleans Pelicans trade for Durant? Here’s my answer:
Here’s the reasons why they should:
The NBA is a notoriously unforgiving league, where franchises die on the sword thinking they are close to winning a title, but never actually get over the hump. There have been COUNTLESS teams right on the cusp of winning a title, or looking like they will have years of possibilities, who simply crash and burn, never to be heard from again. The first few that come to mind are the Portland Trailblazers (twice), the OKC Thunder, The LA Clippers (jury is still out I suppose because they have been making moves to keep themselves right there even with a totally new roster), the SuperSonics, and the Baby Bulls. With this in mind, I’m of the mindset that if you have the ability to go get a player who you believe elevates you enough to bring you to the finals, you do it, regardless of what it takes. With Kevin Durant, any team is instantly elevated into the top tier, with the possibility of making it to the finals depending on the roster around him. This move would INSTANTLY elevate the team into title contention.
Here's the reasons why they should NOT:
Emotion. Potential. The Unknown. Pelicans History. Culture. These 5 categories stick out to me a great deal when it comes to building long term success, not only on the court, but with the fanbase. Sure, a team can go trade for KD and instantly be in the title picture, but with the culture in place, it feels….icky. New Orleans is a city known for gravitating to those who get it out of the mud. We want to identify with our players, with what they’ve been through. We want our players to WANT to be here, and to love being a part of something we consider to be special. New Orleans isn’t just another city. We are unique, and we demand unique love with that. We love our home-grown stars, namely Brandon Ingram, who many would claim is in line with what KD brings anyway, only almost a full decade younger. (I’m of the mind Ingram is more DeRozan than KD, but if he falls ANYWHERE in between, I’m all in.) We will ride with this guy no matter what. On top of this, the potential for the great rise is there. Are the Pelicans going to make the NBA finals this year? Probably not, but we are damn sure excited to make a much deeper run than in the past, and hopefully catch lightening in a bottle to get there.
Pelicans history would also tell you we have been burned. We are scorned. As a fan base, we FEAR situations like this. Namely: Demarcus Cousins.
This leads me to this though: It is simply not worth it to mortgage your future on a 35 year old player who has had major injury, coming off of a season where he played 37 minutes per game. If you don’t get to the Finals year one, then what? If he’s injured and you gave up your entire future for ONE YEAR, then what?
Closing thoughts:
I’m simply happy that I do not have to make decisions for the Pelicans Basketball team. I am completely content judging from afar and riding my fandom into the ground as long as possible. If I was forced to make a decision, gun to my head, I try to get a third team involved to make the money work, and I’m only willing to make DG, Jax, Trey, Lance, Jonas, and Dyson available, with picks of course. With that being said, I don’t even want to trade half of those guys I've listed.
In short, good luck Griff and Langdon. I’ll trust your decision here, unless it’s a dumb one.
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