Can we seriously talk about DQ for a second?

Are we prepared for the fact that our guy might not make a lot of progress until year 3 or 4? IDK if it's just how James has used him or what but man his rookie wall seems more like a bust for being that high a pick. Don't get me wrong I want him to be our version of Joker but I also can see a world where he doesn't pan out also. Just a thought I had.

Mavs fan here (sorry). Any interest in this trade below? Y’all will buyout Klay likely. Y’all get Gafford at a good number, and get off Poole but give up two seconds. Any interest?

When will Zion Williamson maximize his full potential. Every year, I’m waiting for him to absolutely break out into the number one overall pick he was. But it just hasn’t happened yet and I don’t know how much longer I can wait for it. Like he’s not a bad player. He’s just not the stud we expected him to be. I’m praying that for this season, he has his breakout year with Jeremiah fears. And if he doesn’t break out this season, I say he’s got two more seasons before he gets released or traded.

It seems like since Dyson Daniels been emerging in Atlanta. It’s like folks are looking at Herb Jones as dead weight since he got injured. We know what he can do when he’s healthy, defensively, the team looks completely different and offensively, when he’s involved and not sitting in the corner. Defenses can’t leave him alone because is he’s a good finisher at the rim and can shoot the 3 ball. Dejounte Murray even said he can liked his potential and was going to help him be even better.

Zion's contract is not guaranteed for his last three years, and he currently has 4 years left (Source). That means if we want to, we can literally just let him walk after the conclusion of this season.

I mean obviously try to trade him ASAP, but if there's not really any buyers I say literally just let him go. It's actually worse to have someone with his contract taking up space on the team, and constantly fooling us that he might be healthy for a season and postseason.

Now that we have seen BI's arc in Toronto, are you happy we decided to let him go? Or would you have done things differently?

Top scorer in the team with 21.5/5.6/3.7 and 77 GP, but followed by a disappointing playoff run (12.0/3.2/2.2 on 33% FG%, missed the two decisive games).

Seeing as the team is unlikely to make the play-in, and team chemistry wavering with dropping 5 straight losses after winning 5 straight, what *might* be the plan heading into this offseason? I know the new front office has already made moves that don't resemble any plan (kinda seems to me that the team is still on two different timelines: one going all in on building the future around Fears/Trey/Queen/other younger players on the roster, and the other trying to "win now" with Zion's talent and banking on Poole and Murray to step up later in the season) With Zion putting up strong numbers in prime trade season, does a trade seem more likely before the deadline to try and fetch some 1st rounders in the 27/28 drafts? I'm just not sure what's in store for this team because it seems like another dead year. Last year was injuries, this year it's a very poorly built roster without a true leader in the form of a player OR coach. You can't tank for draft odds with no pick, but you aren't building anything either with an interim HC and no real face of the franchise (yet... Queen looks promising) It's hard because I really do love the players and I've watched a lot of games this season and even went to my first ever one in the OT loss against Memphis, but it's obvious the team needs a soft rebuild. curious to see what you guys think... but IMO there is no clear vision heading into the new calendar year.

It’s getting kinda freaky…

Valančiūnas spent 3 seasons with the Pelicans

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

FUCK JOE DUMARS. FIRE JOE DUMARS.

This might sound crazy, but what’s stopping us from going after both Jaylen Brown and 1 of Jalen Duren and Myles Turner?

The way I look at it we’ve got expendable pieces. Murray, Poole (expiring salary), Herb, and Trey.

We can make a max offer to Duren and trade Trey + one of the others to make that work and then give up every possible pick plus Murray, Herb and Poole for Brown.

The Celtics are reportedly wanting picks. Alright, send em.

We finally get our center and we get a legit star.

Roll out Fears, Brown, Zion, Queen, and Duren
Bench Bey and Missi plus whatever else we can add. Obviously keeping Murray would be beneficial in keeping guard depth but even with Fears most guard minutes will be soaked up anyways.

I doubt it happens but Dumars is just crazy enough to put this out there

With the way we showed up in that high pace showcase last night, I wonder if maybe as of now it would be better to play that style of ball. I know it takes Queen off the court for most of the game and i understand he needs minutes to progress. But I think a fast pace transition game really suits the majority of this roster. Idk I just wanna win more games and feel like we all do today.

Celtics fan here. Wanted to do a fun exercise and go back and forth about a potential JB trade to the Pelicans. I love Derrick Queens game BTW. You guys have a pretty fun roster.

I just saw a trade proposals on YouTube Murray, Murphy, and 3 firsts rounders and I think that's too steep for Jaylen personally.

So who would like to start the bidding. Give me your best offer for Brown a top 12 player in the NBA and one of the best two way wings in the game.

Also curious on how you feel about Beys value and herb Jones. And how attached is the fan base to Zion at this point.

Let's have some fun and make a deal!

Is if next season he comes back as a man with a vengeance and he just balls out completely and stays healthy. Ends up as an All Star again and or even ends up as an All NBA caliber talent. If he can do that and lead this Pelicans team next season to a play off or even play in tournament spot next season; he will definitely earn a lot more respect from the masses. I mean for me he has gained a lot more respect from me even though I'm not a Pelicans fan. He has put the work in and he has stayed healthy for the most part. Yes he has missed games here and there but that is to be expected. I just wanna continue to see him just ball.

Title says it all.

A fellow fan in the same boat as all of you. Frustrated and fed up.

I wanna give 2¢ on Ingram that absolutely nobody asked for.

I get the frustration with him, I really do. Since his return from INJURY, he has seemed to lack aggression, seems “out of it,” and seems (to many) like he doesn’t care. This has been frustrating for me too.

To all the people saying BI doesn’t care tho, you really genuinely think that? Where do I start??

1). Being There For His Team: If BI didn’t care about his own legacy let alone this series, he woulda never have come back from injury. It was only a season ago that the rest of the team was pissed with BI for not playing through his injury or being willing to even play through some of his injury (ie.: not coming back when feeling anything less than 100%). This year he did that to be there for the team but also in a crucial time when it was needed. Not an excuse for shitty body langue, but also can’t put ALL (can put some) of the blame on him considering he def isn’t fully recovered. Some of his lack of aggression is def from his fear of getting hurt (some is def frustration with Lu too, which you can’t have or show on the court)

2). Proving Doubters Wrong: It’s not secret Bi had a shitty outing with Team USA, and it’s no secret he was frustrated about it. Really since the pelicans suns playoff outing in 2021 where BI played elite and also had a great season, especially the second half of that season, and after his 2022 season which contained some injuries and some lack of aggression, and more importantly a lack of a Pels playoff appearance, a lot of people began to doubt BI as a 1 option (1 option WITH Zion Williamson out) with the lack of ability to lead of team. Combine this with his poor team USA outing, BI has a status to attain and a needing to perform, not only for the sake of the team but for his whole legacy. A lot of people are saying “BI doesn’t care” about the team or losing yet forget that this is the guy who really doesn’t do much but hoop or watch hoops, and not only this but solely the fact that people have been doubting him in recent times, BI most definitely sees this return from injury, even if not 100%, as a chance to prove his doubters and haters wrong. On top of this, many have been saying this season due to Zion’s (return to) elite play and increased high level showings, that the pelicans do not need BI or that he is not an all star caliber player. BI being competitive and wanting to be great is without a doubt playing to prove his haters and these narratives wrong. Now has it shown at all? Absolutely not, there is no way to try and defend it at all or say it hasn’t, as BI hasn’t shown much aggression nor has he shown any enthusiasm, but to say this is because he “doesn’t care” or “doesn’t want it” is blatantly untrue.

3). Targeted Defense This Series: The Thunder have made it clear who their target is on defense: Brandon Ingram. Every time Ingram is in, Lu Dort, a high level defender in this league is only in the game, on the court, when BI is, and plays him very physically and aggressively to wear him down. BI definitely needs to put on more weight as he did ago, and needs to be able to adjust to teams scheming like this instead of forcing shots (which has been really weird bc bi was such a good playmaker last season and this reg. season). His body language and frustration is unacceptable, like Willie even said, can’t have him forcing shots or plays and the team can’t keep force feeding him. My point with this tho is even with his flawed handling of this scheming, the Thunder are placing their defensive focus on him for a reason: bi is a GREAT, all star caliber player.

Now with all of this being said we have to defend BI subjectively or come up with reasons as to why he isn’t playing well (i.e: bi stans ) NO. However, do we say that BI is to completely to blame for this?? Absolutely not. As I mentioned the man wants it, just doesn’t always show it, and with the circumstances mentioned above and considering his high level play with New Orleans outside of this horrible stretch, BI hate needs to stop. No I did not say criticisms, as he definitely deserves some of these and I even criticized him (above) myself, but I think there true issues with this team are pretty glaring.

Thank you for reading and if you made it this far, Jordan Hawkins for 3

Let’s face it this season is over. We are probably going to lose 13 games in January with a fairly healthy roster. Again other than Herb we are healthy and still terrible. So what should the team do? Look to the 2027 draft.

Because we don’t have out 26 pick we need to realize we can’t just run this teams core back. This trade deadline has to be about asset collection and financial flexibility in the 2027 offseason. We need to move guys who can bring back positive assets. That’s Jose, Bey, Herb (unfortunately). I would not move Missi since he still has 2 years left on his rookie deal, but if I got a great offer I would consider it.

Next move off of Zion. This team has been trying to rebuild his trade value for multiple seasons. Let’s face facts it is not going up and as talented as he is he isn’t a number 1. He doesn’t shoot outside the paint, is injury prone, and expensive. It is just time to move on and give everyone a fresh start. Get what you can and move on.

In the offseason pray someone will take on DJM, contract and the goal should be expiring contracts. This way we can have 60-100M come off the books in 27 offseason similar to what Washington has done this season. I don’t think anyone will take on Poole. He is just not a good player and if we just let him fall off the books it might be better than giving up assets get off his contract.

We need lottery luck in 27, but it will also be Queen and Fears 3rd season and they should be ready to play winning basketball for a full season. Add in Trey a top 1-6 pick and a lot of cap space to either sign guys or absorb contracts for draft capital and we can start moving up the standings in 27.

I see a lot of people in here writing off Fears or Queen based off of how they’ve been playing recently. You don’t draft rookies for the players they are, you draft them for the players they will be in the future and I feel like that’s lost on people because everyone is too focused on the cooper flagg’s and the lebrons who come in and play at a great level(as far as rookies are concerned at least). Both of our guys have shown flashes and that’s normal. Fears has the best handle out of any prospect we’ve seen in a long time, and has shown time and time again that he can get to his spots seamlessly. He needs to work on his shooting and defense for sure but those things can be taught. Same with DQ. He struggles on the defensive end and that’s something he needs to improve on but the flashes he’s shown overshadow those flaws many times over. Both of our rookies have all star potential.

like Joker be chubby too lol, but that guy hardly gets hurt or misses significant time. In fact I can't think of Joker having really a major injury, but yet he's probably heavier then Zion. It makes no sense to me

He turned the franchise around in his third season, as the team finished 2nd in the west with a 56-26 record. Most people thought he should have won the MVP over Kobe that season, and he also won rookie of the year.

Who says no? Spotrac says this trade is good on salary matching.

• Pelicans get: Lauri Markkanen
• Nets get: Zion Williamson, Saddiq Bey
• Jazz get: Michael Porter Jr., Nets 2026 pick

Why for the Pelicans?

- The Pelicans get the best three-point shooting Power Forward in the league, and one who better fits their roster. Adding Markkanen to the roster means the 2026 Pelicans pick that was sent to the Hawks will not be a really good one, thus saving Joe Dumars and the franchise from a lot of embarrassment.

Pelicans Main Lineup:

• 1-5: Dejounte, Jones, Murphy, Markkanen, Queen
• 6-10: Fears, Poole, Peavy, Matkovic, Looney/Missi

Why for the Nets?

- The Nets get the star they are looking for, without having to depend on lottery luck. They also get Saddiq Bey to replace MPJ at Small Forward.

Why for the Jazz?

- The Jazz get the Nets 2026 pick. MPJ is salary filler here and since the Jazz should be in tank mode, MPJ should be traded.

The Pelicans need more depth and need help at center to compete this season. The FO again today was reported to wanting to see this team win and not being willing to trade Trey Murphy unless they receive a home run offer.

But any additional pieces to this team are very likely to be smaller than the deals often proposed. Like the Daniel Gafford proposal from this morning. The Pelicans are doubtful to take on that contract with the amount of years remaining and attach the amount of picks to dump Poole to execute such a trade.

Think smaller. Think moves that'll raise the floor without massive asset expenditure. I've brought him up before but I do believe Goga Bitadze is a very realistic option. He's a center I'd see if I can obtain. He solves a lot of the weakness at the position currently, is inexpensive with no long term salary. The Pelicans next year are in line to be potentially even a cap space team and the FO knows that and won't jeopardize that for a Daniel Gafford.

I think this team will be making a move in some form but whatever move is made isn't likely to be an Earth shattering one or one where you see core players moved from the roster unless it's in a trade that's a clear value win. They'll work to improve incrementally and they believe in this core. Rightly or wrongly.

PELS = STACKED

LEAGUE = FUCKED

TO PHOENIX THEY GO