NBA Analyst Offers Strong Opinion on New Orleans Pelicans Offseason

An analyst offered a strong opinion on how the New Orleans Pelicans did in the 2024 NBA offseason compared to other teams.

Nov 4, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray (5) reacts to making a three point basket against New Orleans Pelicans guard Kira Lewis Jr. (13) during the second half at Smoothie King Center. / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The New Orleans Pelicans have been making strides every season under head coach Willie Green. He has been on the sidelines for three seasons and each time, the Pelicans have improved their win total.

Unfortunately, that hasn’t resulted in much postseason success. New Orleans has been in the NBA Play-In Tournament in a loaded Western Conference all three years under Green, advancing to the playoffs twice.

In both instances, they were first-round fodder. In 2021, they were defeated by the Phoenix Suns in a competitive six-game series. This past year, they were swept by the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder.

Looking to improve their standing in the ridiculously deep Western Conference, the Pelicans made a splash on the trade market this offseason. They acquired guard Dejounte Murray from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance Jr., Cody Zeller, E.J. Liddell and two first-round picks.

The frontcourt depth chart was revamped. Along with Nance and Zeller, the team also saw Jonas Valanciuas depart in free agency, signing a three-year, $30.3 million deal with the Washington Wizards as part of a sign-and-trade.

Another underrated loss for the Pelicans was Naji Marshall signing a three-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks, one of the teams New Orleans will assuredly be jockeying with for position in the standings.

Along with Murray, the team signed veteran center Daniel Theis, claimed Trey Jemison from the Memphis Grizzlies and used a first-round pick on Yves Missi in the 2024 NBA Draft to restock the depth at the center spot.

How did the offseason moves by David Griffin compare to what other teams around the league did? In the opinion of esteemed NBA journalist David Aldridge of The Athletic, New Orleans fared rather well.

Aldridge has been releasing his power rankings for how each team performed during the offseason. This isn’t a power ranking based on how they will perform during the season, just strictly based on the moves that were made this summer. The Pelicans' moves were well received, as Aldridge ranked them at No. 12.

“The Pels still had some extra draft inventory from the Jrue Holiday and Anthony Davis trades, so they used some of it to get Murray. He should be a good addition, with positional size and a reasonable-for-today's NBA contract through 2028. That times up well with Williamson's prime, along with Trey Murphy III, Herb Jones and Alvarado. But New Orleans presumably has more planned to shake up its roster, as team president David Griffin made clear after another playoff flameout. Brandon Ingram hasn't been moved as of this writing, and it's getting late in the summer to do so, but he would be the one guy who could bring back significant pieces in return,” Aldridge wrote.

It will be interesting to see what else Griffin has up his sleeve. This is a talented roster, but a misbalanced one. Trading Brandon Ingram would help alleviate a lot of the logjam issues that Green is going to face.

Ideally, Ingram would be swapped out for some established depth in the frontcourt. Trading him would pave the way for a Trey Murphy breakout campaign while also providing more minutes for 2023 first-round pick Jordan Hawkins.

While an Ingram move may not count toward the offseason rankings Aldridge has made, it would be a significantly impactful move for the franchise. He is the last remaining piece from the team’s blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Lakers centered around Anthony Davis.