When it started 2025 out of season, the fans of New Orleans Pelicans wondered in which direction the new president of basketball operations, Joe Dumars, would take this team. Many speculated a hard reset that Zion Williamson, Herb Jones and Trey Murphy would see. Instead, Dumars decided to keep the core together and to make movements to bring depth, experience and young talent, making the pelicans built in a real play -off competition.
The low season proved to us that the goal of the pelicans under Joe Dumars is to make the play -offs and to become a winning basketball team. This has led me to speculate that players such as Jordan Hawkins and Yves Missi could become excellent trading candidates during this season if they have trouble breaking out.
Although both Hawkins and Missi are young and offer a skills on paper that the Pelicans need, I don’t think they are ready enough to contribute to as rotary pieces in a Playoff team.
Of course, Hawkins has the potential to be a great knockdown shooter, but he really has to settle as a consistent threat of deep in the NBA. If he does not make an impact of the bank early in the following season, the Pelicans must look to continue.
I think a man who would be the perfect replacement for J-HAWK in this schedule is Toronto Raptors Wing Ochai Agbaji. When he comes for a year in which he has 39.9% out of three lap, he has grown into one of the absolutely best 3-and-D wings in the competition.
Agbaji would be the perfect acquisition in the mid -season
Agbaji has one of the best frames in the entire NBA on 6’5 “, 215 pounds. This frame enables him to guard everyone 1 to 4, because he is rarely bullied by longer offensive players because of his strength. He also brings so much energy defensive and tries to generate constant turnover; last season, he is just one stable per game.
He plays with a high engine and energy that would fit with Jose Alvarado and Herb Jones.
Offensing, he has no crazy bag, but is a great athlete and both a threat to the circumference and on the edge. Last season Agbaji was a murderer from the corner when he shot 40% on his corner three. With the Pelicans in the bottom five in three -point attempts and last season, the presence of Agbaji would bring a huge boost for their attack from outside the arch.
In the long term, he may have a similar career like Jordan Hawkins, but because of his size and versatility, he would fit a much better with the Pelicans.
From a season where he had an average of 10.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per match, his value will be high. With the overwhelming wing depth that Toronto now has with Ingram, Barrett and Dick, Abaji is perhaps the strange man.
I think if New Orleans Yves Missi offered in a one-for-one swap, Toronto would jump on it. At the moment the Raptors miss a long -term answer to the five, as soon as Jakob Poeltl starts regressing and Missi could be the answer for them.
If the Pelicans still have themselves in a play-off hunt in the middle season, Ochai Abaji would be the perfect trade goal for Joe Dumars and the Front Office.
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