Grade the Trade: Tectonic 3-team pitch has Raptors buying low on an All-Star
Would the Pelicans and Trail Blazers make this trade?
It's important when evaluating any potential trade to make sure it's a deal that makes sense for all sides.
It can be easy to view a trade solely from the lens of a single team; if the Raptors are looking for a star to pair with Scottie Barnes, for example, would they make this deal? Does it seem like fair value? It's not an incorrect way to look at a trade, but rather an incomplete way. That same exercise needs to take place for every team involved.
For the Pelicans, this deal absolutely addresses their need at center. They go from Daniel Theis and a couple of not-ready rookies to a stout rim protector and lob finisher in Jakob Poeltl. The Pelicans don't need someone offensively skilled; they have plenty of other shot creators on the roster. This deal also brings in Chris Boucher as emergency depth on an expiring deal.
The problem is more with the exchange of perimeter players here. Portland gets second-year shooting specialist Jordan Hawkins in exchange for Matisse Thybulle, who is a gifted defender but is a older, more expensive and such an offensive negative it cancels out his defensive impact. The Pelicans are also not a team in need of Thybulle's impact with Herb Jones around. They are clearly losing that exchange, so the swap of Ingram for Poeltl clearly values Poeltl more highly than Ingram, which makes this deal very unlikely from the Pelicans' side.
From Portland's side, however, this deal looks like a slam dunk. They get off of Thybulle's contract, a player they have completely replaced with Deni Avdija, and swap an injured Robert Williams for Jordan Hawkins and their own 2025 second-round pick back, likely to be in the top five picks. They take on Bruce Brown's contract, but he is a positive asset to flip in another trade by the deadline or worst-case expires after the year.
This is a deal that's unlikely for New Orleans and a no-brainer for Portland; what about Toronto?