Former New Orleans Pelicans Big Man Linked As Possible Knicks' Trade Target

A former New Orleans Pelicans big man could be a potential trade target for the New York Knicks.

Apr 14, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) talks to forward Larry Nance Jr. (22) about a play against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half at Smoothie King Center. / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans have had a solid all-around offseason. Obviously, their biggest move of the offseason period was the trade to acquire star guard Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks.

In order to get that deal done, the Pelicans had to ship out talented big man Larry Nance Jr.

Now, Nance has been rumored to potentially be on the move again this offseason.

Empire Sports Media has suggested that Nance could be a potential target for the New York Knicks.

"Nance could give the Knicks some much-needed size in the second unit as well as center depth in the event that Robinson or Achiuwa go down with an injury. He could also play his way into some minutes in spurts to give some other guys extra rest. Trading for him would make sense given that he is on an expiring $11 million salary and is unlikely to play much behind Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu in Atlanta, and even though it would be a slightly similar situation in New York, there’s more opportunity for Nance to play given their lack of size in the second unit."

During the 2023-24 NBA season with New Orleans, Nance ended up playing in 61 games. He played a limited role, averaging 19.9 minutes per game.

In those 61 games, Nance averaged 5.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. He shot 57.3 percent from the floor overall and knocked down 41.5 percent of his limited three-point attempts.

At 31 years old, there is no question that Nance would be a good fit with the Knicks. He could provide valuable minutes off of the bench and give them much-needed front-court depth.

As Empire Sports Media noted, the Hawks are very unlikely to have a role for Nance. They opted not to trade Clint Capela this offseason and they have Okongwu as well.

Atlanta also drafted Zaccharie Risacher with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. He's going to see some minutes at the power forward position as well.

All of that being said, it will be interesting to see what ends up happening with Nance. He's a quality bench player and doesn't seem to have a spot in Atlanta. Don't be surprised if he ends up being moved again, potentially to New York.