Pelicans Keeping Brandon Ingram 'Will Be Complicated'; Mavs Trade Worth Considering?
The NBA offseason is still fresh, yet the Dallas Mavericks have already been linked to several players via trades or free agency, most notably Portland Trail Blazers' Jerami Grant.
If a versatile 6-foot-8 forward from a Western Conference opponent is what Dallas is looking for, perhaps it should inquire about New Orleans Pelicans' Brandon Ingram, whose days in the Big Easy might be numbered.
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"[The Pelicans] keeping [Ingram] around will be complicated," The Athletic's Will Guillory wrote. "Ingram, who turns 27 in September, is eligible for a four-year, $208 million extension this summer. Considering their current and future financial situation, the Pelicans are unlikely to offer him that maximum deal this offseason, league sources tell The Athletic."
Ingram has one year remaining on his current contract worth $36 million, and if the Pelicans don't plan on keeping him around, the smart move would be to trade him now instead of losing him for nothing later. On the other hand, an opposing team like the Mavs wouldn't be willing to trade much for a guy who might end up being a one-year rental. However, Dallas has the salary-filler pieces to make a deal work.
In theory, the Mavs trading Tim Hardaway Jr., Maxi Kleber, and Josh Green for Ingram and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl would work perfectly from a salary-matching perspective. Although they may not feel the same way now, the Pelicans actually offered Hardaway more money than the Mavs did during 2021 free agency, but Hardaway turned them down to re-sign in Dallas.
How Ingram could help the Mavs in their quest to win a title is obvious. In 64 games for the Pelicans last season, he averaged 20.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5.7 assists while shooting 49.2 percent from the floor and 35.5 percent from deep. Ingram will turn 27 years old before the 2024-25 season begins, so he fits right into the Mavs' roster timeline with Luka Doncic just now entering his prime.
