If the New Orleans Pelicans really want to trade Zion Williamson this summer, there will surely be takers.
Williamson is a bit of an NBA enigma given his injury woes, but there’s no question that he can be very effective when on the floor.
One NBA analyst thinks the Pelicans should trade Williamson to the opposite conference.
Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report suggested that the Charlotte Hornets should trade Miles Bridges, Tidjane Salaün, a 2026 first-round pick and a 2028 first-round pick to the Pelicans for Williamson.
That’d be a huge deal, and rather intriguing for Charlotte.
The Hornets would get to pair Williamson with superstar point guard LaMelo Ball.
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No matter who Charlotte had around them, the Ball-Williamson pick-and-roll would immediately become one of the most dangerous in the league.
It’s fun to imagine Ball throwing Williamson alley-oops all game long.
Meanwhile the Pelicans would get a big-time player in Bridges, a raw first-rounder in Salaun, and two other first-round picks to try and work with.
“The idea of a LaMelo Ball-Zion two-man game is enticing,” Bailey writes. “The lobs would be electrifying. And Ball’s mega-high-volume outside shooting would be a solid complement to Williamson’s ability to dominate the paint. Assuming decent health (a bold assumption for both Zion and LaMelo, to be sure), a team with those two, Brandon Miller and Mark Williams could be pushing for the playoffs or play-in as early as 2025-26.”
Sounds like a deal Charlotte should start pursuing immediately. It’s certainly a better swing than sticking in the mediocrity the Hornets are mired in.
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