The Pelicans trade Brandon Ingram to Portland Trail Blazers
At least in my opinion, this is probably the most realistic deal. From an objective standpoint, if the Pelicans want to acquire Hendeson, it’s likely going to come at the cost of Brandon Ingram and probably Dyson Daniels. Especially if they target the Blazers at No. 3 – I ultimately don’t believe the Hornets can afford to trade the No. 2 overall pick. For where they are as a franchise, they need to make and hit on this selection.
That leaves Portland and New Orleans to make a deal, assuming Scoot is still on the board at No. 3. For the Blazers, Ingram has to be the player that they would want. He would have to be viewed as the starting point for any deal that includes the No. 3 pick with the Pelicans. We know that the Blazers are only going to trade this pick for a star. Even though he’s not a clear No. 1 star, Ingram can be a really good supporting star next to Damian Lillard.
But if the Pelicans aren’t willing to trade Ingram, they’re kind of stuck. If a deal between these two sides does take place, I’d have to imagine Ingram would need to be involved.