The New Orleans Pelicans could at least take some notes from this wild three-team trade proposal centered around Zion Williamson with the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets.
The expectation, as of now, is that the New Orleans Pelicans will hold onto Zion Williamson heading into next season, but Joe Dumars himself said he will at least consider anything that comes across his desk as a 26-win team last year.
Williamson has a complicated trade market, so who knows how many active suitors he actually has, but that hasn't stopped others from coming up with some intriguing scenarios. Sai Mohan of Heavy.com came up with the framework of a three-team deal with the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets that doesn't actually work out that badly for the Pelicans.
In this move, New Orleans would send Zion Williamson to the Nets while receiving Jarred Vanderbilt, Jaden Hardy, Jake LaRavia, Dalton Knecht, a 2027 Houston first, a 2028 protected New York Knicks first, and two seconds. The Lakers would walk away from this with Julius Randle.
The side of this that would most have to be tweaked to turn into an actual NBA trade is what Los Angeles gets out of this. Just Randle is simply not enough to say goodbye to all of their young bargaining pieces. They have other holes to address and need some of those players to address them. The Lakers would probably need to get someone like Yves Missi as well but that complicates it further.
It's obvious why this would make sense for the Nets. They can afford to part with some late first round picks after how many players they have taken recently. Williamson is a younger, better player than Randle who would sell plenty more tickets. It's a no-brainer, really.
The Pelicans side of this is worth perusing, though. What exactly do they want to get for Williamson? It's hard to imagine them getting a better package than this for someone with as many injuries as he has had, even if it feels lackluster for how good he is.
Adding four players while getting rid of just one would be hard for New Orleans without some other deals also happening. Hardy and Knecht would be cheaper and hold a higher upside than Jordan Poole and Jordan Hawkins. LaRavia is exactly the type of wing they have been looking for and Vanderbilt can at least rebound well.
The bottom line is that the Pelicans can't expect to get a superstar package return for Williamson. If the season begins and they don't look like contenders, expect to hear his name a lot. The fit with Derik Queen long-term is questionable at best. They might be better off freeing up that space in the offense, adding some depth and picking up a couple of picks in the process.
