New Orleans Pelicans
Trade deadline candidate: Jonas Valanciunas
The New Orleans Pelicans have had quite a memorable offseason. There were whispers that they were going to trade Zion Williamson and even talks they were looking to trade into the top 3 of the 2023 NBA Draft to take Scoot Henderson. In the end, none of that happened and the Pelicans are heading into the new season in hopes that health and a bit of luck will be the key to this team taking the next step in the Western Conference.
And it very well could. Before the Pelicans were decimated by injuries, they were one of the best teams in the conference. We don’t know where the Pelicans would’ve finished had they been healthy all season long. One player that could be a trade candidate for the team at the deadline, though, is Jonas Valanciunas.
Valanciunas is entering the final year of his contact with the team and as a 31-year-old, he doesn’t really line up with the rest of this core. He may not re-sign with the team during the offseason and if the Pelicans feel as if that’s a real possibility, they should at the very least explore trading him.