Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. (17) against the Phoenix Suns in the second half at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
It may have taken them a while, but the New Orleans Pelicans finally woke up a little bit at the end of the offseason.
After spending most of the summer without making some huge win-now move, they landed Bennedict Mathurin on a two-year, $16 million deal, then made another trade Tuesday by sending Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round pick, and a swap to the Grizzlies for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson that saved $5.7 million and helped clear the way for Mathurin’s contract.
They kinda needed something after the season they just had. The Pelicans went 26-56, finished 11th in the Western Conference, and spent the whole year stuck in that terrible middle ground where you’re losing a ton but also aren’t really rebuilding.
New Orleans didn’t use this summer to blow up Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III, or Herbert Jones either, so if they want to make the postseason, then I think there is still room for one aggressive move.
And Michael Porter Jr. is the guy I keep coming back to. The Brooklyn Nets still haven’t figured out Porter’s future after the best individual season of his career. He went for 24.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in 52 games, shooting 46.3% from the field, 36.3% from three, and 85.9% from the line while handling a way bigger offensive role than he ever had in Denver.
The 24.2 points and 3.0 assists were career highs, and for stretches he genuinely looked like a borderline All-Star before a hamstring issue ended his season early.
Now he’s 28, making $40.8 million in the final year of his contract, and extension talks still look pretty stuck. Brooklyn obviously likes him, but recent reporting has pointed to a gap between what Porter wants and what the Nets want to commit long-term.
With one season left before free agency and a roster still built around a bunch of really young players, this is exactly the kind of situation where another team can come in. For the Pelicans, I’d absolutely make the call.
The Trade Idea
Brooklyn Nets Receive: Jordan Poole, Saddiq Bey, DeAndre Jordan, 2028 first-round pick (top-10 protected)
New Orleans Pelicans Receive: Michael Porter Jr.
The money works pretty naturally: Jordan Poole is at $34.0 million, Saddiq Bey is around $6.4 million, and DeAndre Jordan is at $3.9 million, putting New Orleans at roughly $44.4 million outgoing for Porter’s $40.8 million salary.
The 2028 first is also one New Orleans actually controls, and I’d protect it top 10 because giving Brooklyn a totally unprotected future first for an expiring Porter feels a little too rich. The Pelicans own their first-round picks from 2028 onward, so they have enough flexibility to make this kind of swing without going completely crazy again.
Why The Nets Say Yes
Brooklyn already had a chance to sell ridiculously high on Porter last February and chose not to. Teams were calling, the Warriors were one of them, and Michael Scotto later reported that Golden State even considered giving up a first-round pick in the final hours before the deadline.
There were mixed reports about exactly how serious the Warriors got, and Kevin O’Connor later reported that Steve Kerr wasn’t sold on MPJ anyway, but the important part for Brooklyn is pretty obvious: there was a market.
The difference now is that Porter’s contract has lost another year of control. Back then, Brooklyn could tell teams, “nah, we’ll keep him,” since he was under contract next season.
Now he’s sitting on an expiring $40.8 million salary with extension talks unresolved, and the Nets risk getting into a much uglier spot if February arrives with no agreement. They can still keep him, obviously, but the leverage isn’t exactly going up while unrestricted free agency gets closer.
And I’m not sure how many teams are throwing premium assets at a player with this specific profile either. Porter is an awesome scorer and a giant shooter at 6-foot-10, but he’s still mostly giving you scoring, rebounding, and shooting.
He isn’t a primary playmaker, he isn’t the dude you build your defense around, and he has one of the longest medical files of any 28-year-old star-level player after multiple back surgeries, nerve issues, and now another season ending early because of his hamstring.
That’s not me saying he’s bad, he’s really freaking good, it just makes the $40.8 million and next contract way harder to price.
So this Pelicans offer is pretty decent when you actually break it down. Poole is there mostly because somebody has to make the salaries work, and his 2025-26 season was brutal. He fell to 13.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 39 games, shot 37.2% from the field and 33.3% from three, started only eight times, and somehow posted a 48.0% effective field-goal percentage.
That isn’t a guy Brooklyn should look at as a core player, but his $34.0 million comes off the books next summer, so the Nets can basically treat him as one giant expiring contract.
Bey is way more interesting after his best NBA season with 17.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists, shooting 45.1% from the field and 36.7% from three across 72 games.
His $6.4 million deal also expires after 2026-27, and at that salary he’s the kind of veteran Brooklyn could either keep around its kids or flip later for another asset if somebody needs scoring on the wing. DeAndre Jordan is basically salary filler and a veteran locker-room guy, nothing more complicated than that.
Then you get the actual reason Brooklyn does this, the pick. A 2028 Pelicans first with top-10 protection isn’t some guaranteed lottery jackpot, but New Orleans has spent basically half a decade proving that its future is never predictable. Zion’s health history alone makes a future Pelicans pick interesting, and if the Nets don’t want to pay Porter what he wants anyway, getting a future first plus two expiring contracts and a productive veteran wing is a decent exit.
Would Brooklyn ask for more? Probably. They turned down offers last season and clearly value Porter. But his price can’t stay that high forever if the extension still isn’t happening.
Why The Pelicans Do This
Look at the players the Pelicans actually want to build around. Dejounte Murray wants the ball and gets most of his offense inside the arc, Zion Williamson basically lives in the paint, Herbert Jones shot 30.9% from three last season, and Mathurin has never been some massive-volume shooter either.
Trey Murphy III is the exception, hitting 37.9% from three on 8.6 attempts while scoring 21.5 points per game, and New Orleans desperately needs another dude who creates the same kind of panic away from the ball.
Last season’s numbers were gross. The Pelicans hit only 34.7% from three, which ranked 24th, and made just 11.1 triples per game, 27th in the NBA. They attempted 32.1 threes per night, also near the bottom of the league, while finishing 21st in offensive rating despite Zion shooting 60.0% from the field and Murphy having the best season of his career. There just wasn’t enough shooting around all that paint pressure.
Even in what was technically a down season from his career standard, Porter Jr. still made 3.4 threes per game on 9.3 attempts, numbers nobody on the Pelicans matched outside Murphy’s 3.2 makes on 8.6 attempts. For his career, MPJ is a 39.8% three-point shooter, so defenses aren’t going to start helping off him just because he finished 2025-26 at 36.3%. They know exactly what happens if they lose him for half a second.
Now picture a Murray-Zion pick-and-roll with Murphy and Porter standing on opposite sides. Where is the help supposed to come from? Leave Murphy, and you’re giving a 37.9% shooter some massive space. Leave Porter, and you’re giving a 6-foot-10 shooter who has hit basically 40% of his career threes an open catch-and-shoot look. Stay home on both, and Zion gets a runway toward the rim.
The price is what really sells me here. Poole was awful last year and doesn’t look necessary anymore with Murray, Jeremiah Fears, and now Mathurin soaking up guard touches. Bey was genuinely very good, so losing him hurts, but you’re basically turning Bey plus an expiring contract you probably don’t want into a 24-point scorer who directly attacks your biggest weakness.
And if the Pelicans are going to keep betting on this core, then bet on it properly. They already decided against some giant rebuild after a 26-win season. Zion is still here, Murphy is still here, Herb is still here and they just used more money on Mathurin instead of taking a step backward. Staying halfway competitive and hoping the exact same spacing problems magically disappear doesn’t make much sense to me.
Porter isn’t perfect, his health is scary, and extending him could become expensive as hell, but that is also why you’re getting a chance to trade for somebody coming off 24.2 points per game without sending Murphy, Herb, Fears, or multiple first-round picks.
A lineup built around Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy III, Michael Porter Jr., Zion Williamson, and Derik Queen would at least have an actual offensive identity, and Mathurin, Herb Jones, and Jeremiah Fears would give them great options around it. I’m not calling that a contender because 26 wins to contender is a ridiculous jump, but playoffs? Yeah, now I can see the idea.