The New Orleans Pelicans should have one goal going forward. Keeping Zion Williamson happy. The rumors spreading around the NBA about his family not wanting him to play in New Orleans anymore is bad for business and something David Griffin and the front office need to nip in the bud as soon as possible.
The easiest way to do that is by upgrading the roster around him and Brandon Ingram to start winning some games and making playoff pushes. As the old saying goes, winning is the best deodorant. As long as the team is succeeding on the court, those rumors about wanting to leave will quiet down.
This offseason the team has made some changes to the roster. While they did not make the big splash for another star player, they did clear a lot of cap space in the acquisition of Jonas Valanciunas from the Memphis Grizzlies.
The teams swapped first and second-round picks in the 2021 NBA Draft, with New Orleans also sending a 2022 first-round pick via the Los Angeles Lakers to Memphis to take the contracts of Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams.
The Pelicans struck out on Kyle Lowry but added Devonte’ Graham in a sign-and-trade with the Charlotte Hornets to help offset the loss of Lonzo Ball, who was picked up by the Chicago Bulls in a sign-and-trade.
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Adding some shooting around Williamson and Ingram was one of the team’s goals this offseason and they accomplished that with Graham and Valanciunas. They could commit to it even more landing Buddy Hield from the Sacramento Kings.
Hield has been on the trade block and could slide right into the starting shooting guard spot in the New Orleans Pelicans’ lineup should he be acquired. What could a trade centered on Buddy Hield look like? Let’s take a look.