The New Orleans Pelicans are 8-7 early on in the 2023-24 NBA season, and look like a team that could scrap its way into the postseason. It's a good sign that New Orleans is hanging in there despite being without CJ McCollum (lung) and Trey Murphy III (knee) in the lineup, as both are obviously critical offensively for what the Pelicans want to do.
The issue for the Pelicans isn't that they don't have a talented team. Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum are one of the league's best trios when everyone is healthy, even if that's been incredibly rare to see. The issue is more about whether those stars all fit together, and what kind of timeline New Orleans should be on moving forward.
For the time being, the Pelicans are mostly an average basketball team. They aren't elite defensively (14th in defensive rating) or offensively (19th in offensive rating), so that 8-7 record feels about right.
If the Pelicans want to try and get off the treadmill of mediocrity and raise the ceiling with a trade, there's only one candidate that makes a lot of sense.
Why the Pelicans should trade Brandon Ingram soon
Brandon Ingram is in that Zach LaVine tier of stars, in that his scoring is his best contribution but he doesn't necessarily effect winning as much as you'd like to see. Ingram is in Year 8 at this point of his career, so it's safe to assume he mostly is a finished product. Ingram can create and handle a little bit, but at heart he's a natural scorer.
There's just too much overlap between what Zion brings to the table and what Ingram does as well. The two don't necessarily complement each other all that well, as both players are best suited to be forwards who push the ball in transition and get downhill. There doesn't seem to be a ton of chemistry between the two, which could be mostly in part to Zion Williamson struggling to stay on the court.
The Pelicans may be running out of time to make this work. Ingram has two years left on his contract before he can enter free agency, and New Orleans could be at risk of losing him outright. Dealing him now when New Orleans has some leverage to do so would be the wisest decision.
What could the Pelicans get back for Ingram? That's the tricky part. Ingram could perhaps fetch a trade haul similar to Bradley Beal, where the Pelicans could land multiple first-rounders and swaps along with a big contract. Ingram probably isn't viewed quite on the same level as Beal, but that should be the asking price from a contender for Ingram's services.
Could a team like the Hawks offer up DeAndre Hunter and picks to get another legitimate scorer next to Trae Young? Would the Thunder push in some trade chips to get a player of Ingram's caliber without sacrificing any of their young core?
There are options out there for the Pelicans to explore, and it makes sense to do that now before the clock starts ticking on Ingram's tenure in New Orleans. Ingram is a talented player, but finding a better star fit next to Zion Williamson who can cover up some of his weaknesses instead of duplicating some of his strengths should be considered a priority as trade season in the NBA approaches this winter.