Pelicans Scoop

NBA Trade Idea Pairs $158M Pelicans Star With Victor Wembanyama

The New Orleans Pelicans and San Antonio Spurs could be active at the NBA trade deadline.

Joey Linn

Dec 8, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks in the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at Frost Bank Center.
Dec 8, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks in the second half against the New Orleans Pelicans at Frost Bank Center. / Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images
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The New Orleans Pelicans are 5-21 and last in the Western Conference. With NBA trade rumors heating up, the Pelicans’ start to the season has them involved in a lot of these hypothetical trade scenarios.

Both Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson are sidelined due to injury, which makes them much more difficult to trade. This is especially the case for Williamson who has been hampered by injuries almost his entire NBA career.

With Ingram entering free agency as his $158 million contract expires after this season, any team trading for him would likely do so with the intention to re-sign him. Could the San Antonio Spurs look to pair Ingram with Victor Wembanyama?

Victor Wembanyama and Brandon Ingram
Dec 17, 2023; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks over New Orleans Pelicans Brandon Ingram (14) during the first half at Frost Bank Center. / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

During a recent ESPN segment, NBA insider and cap space expert Bobby Marks proposed a deal that sends Ingram to San Antonio.

“For me, it’s San Antonio,” Marks said of a potential Ingram trade destination. “That would make the most sense there. Just the ability to extend him or sign him to a contract in the offseason. Certainly with Victor Wembanyama on this roster.”

The deal Marks proposed sends Keldon Johnson and Zach Collins to New Orleans along with a future first round pick.

“That works for Brandon Ingram,” Marks said of this trade structure.

While there is no sense on whether other not New Orleans and San Antonio would agree to such a deal, Marks believes it could make sense for the Spurs to pair Wembanyama with a former NBA All-Star in Ingram.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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