re: KOC: League sources "expect" Pelicans to be aggressive in trade market

The Knicks?

I'm not going to distinguish between mid-season or off-season trades. Some teams have been more aggressive in turning over their rosters. The Knicks deal involved them trading some good young players they liked to get a piece that fit. Dallas gave up mainly picks and future cap flexibility to get Washington and Gafford and it propelled them to the 5th seed (we'll see if it goes much further). The Lakers deal at the deadline last year gave them a major, if short-lived, boost to the WCF. Even OKC made a move for Gordon Hayward, though he has been a non-factor for them.

I was ok with the Pels standing pat this year (though I liked the idea of trading Brandon in a deal for Murray & Capella or Okongwu). The organization wanted to get a look at the roster as was and we were winning. Hard to break things up under those circumstances IRL. But five years in and with a good sample size on the status quo, for me there are no excuses for not making moves this summer. You know where you stand in the West. There are no perfect deals only trade offs. Make some because nothing is worse than NBA purgatory.