The New Orleans Pelicans are thought to be interested in adding Scoot Henderson to their roster, but in order to move up the draft board, the Pelicans would have to include either Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram in a trade package, believes NBA writer Mark Medina.
The Pels currently have the No. 14 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and with Henderson looking ever-likely to be drafted in the top-3, they would potentially have to be open to including one of their premium assets for such a move to take place.
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NBA draft news – New Orleans Pelicans
Shams Charania of The Athletic broke the news that the Pelicans are expected to aggressively pursue a top pick in the upcoming NBA draft, likely targeting the No. 2 or No. 3 spot, with the Charlotte Hornets and Portland Trail Blazers holding these picks respectively.
With the Portland Trail Blazers in particular looking to build a roster that is good enough to tempt 7x All-Star Damian Lillard to stay with the team, any trade offer proposed by the Pelicans would have to be substantial enough and perhaps considered as franchise-altering.
NBA insider Mark Stein recently reported that the Pelicans are open to trading away the 2019 1st overall pick in Zion Williamson in order to move up the trade board and increase their odds of drafting the player out of the NBA G League Ignite.
CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn reported that it could be in the best interest of the NOLA team to trade away one or two of their max-contracts in return for a cost-controlled rookie deal.
Whether that means a deal of such magnitude would enable them to be a Western Conference contender or not remains to be seen.
What has Mark Medina said about the New Orleans Pelicans?
Despite the Pelicans have the assets which could tempt teams into a pick-swap, Medina believes the challenge remains being around whether they are actually willing to give up Zion Williamson, who at one point in time was thought to be a franchise-leading player, or Brandon Ingram.
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said: “I think the challenge if they are going to get a No. 2 or No. 3 pick to try to get Scott Henderson, it’ll have to involve Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram.”
“At this point, it’s been about trying to build around them. But Zion Williamson has been hurt.”
“While I don’t think any professional team necessarily evaluates off the court things as long as it doesn’t affect your play, the reality is Zion’s been involved with a lot of those things. It doesn’t help the situation, but I don’t know if that’s actually going to be a factor in anything.”
Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram
Despite the hype surrounding the 6’6” power forward coming out of Duke University, his career in the NBA hasn’t really materialized as many had expected.
As per Statmuse, in his three seasons in the NBA, he has failed to play in more than 61 regular season games, playing a total of 114 games in this time. In the 2022-23 season, he took part in only 29 games with averages of 26.0 PPG and 7.0 RPG, shooting 60.5% from the field. Despite some good numbers, and clear potential, his lack of availability due to injury is a cause for concern around the league. After all, ‘availability is the best ability’.
On the other hand, Brandon Ingram has enjoyed success since being traded from the L.A. Lakers in 2019. In his four seasons with the Pelicans, known as ‘The Slenderman’ due to his slim 6’8” frame, the forward has averaged 23.7 PPG, 5.6 RPG and 5.0 APG. He has ultimately showed that he could be a powerful trade asset if the Pelicans were to decide that Scoot Henderson is their future.
Trading away either of these players would unquestionably send shock waves around the entire NBA, so all eyes will be on the Pelicans ahead of the NBA Draft which takes place on June 22nd.