The New Orleans Pelicans’ 2015-16 season is not for the faint of heart.
Injuries have left them outside of the playoff picture. Anthony Davis remains a magnet for contact. Poor, impulsive spending habits have made it so that, even if the Pelicans are healthy, they won’t be worthy of more than a first-round exit at the hands of the San Antonio Spurs or Golden State Warriors.
Some, like yours truly, have subsequently called for a dismantling of the roster. We know Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon (among those injured), who will be free agents this summer, can be had. But hitting the reset button involves more—it entails dumping salary, trying to sweeten Omer Asik’s crappy deal with a contractual carrot, losing for the sake of Ben Simmons, and entering this summer as an aggressive free-agent player with, ideally, a top-three draft pick.
The Pelicans, however, haven’t yet seemed ready to give up on 2015-16. They fired Monty Williams and hired Alvin Gentry so they could build upon last season’s playoff appearance, not start over. They are a stone’s throw away from the West’s No. 8 seed as it is and are, presumably, operating under a definitive directive: Win as much as possible now.
Or maybe not.
According to Sheridan Hoops’ Michael Scotto, the Pelicans are apparently making yet another one of their key contributors available:
Sources: Pelicans are listening to trade offers for Tyreke Evans and gauging his value. He is on the books for $10.2 million next season.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) January 28, 2016
Evans can play and defend positions 1 through 3, and I’d personally entertain throwing him out at the 4 from time to time. He is conservatively listed at 6’6″ and having a career year from three-point range, which would create a ton of mismatches. Just saying.
Does this mean the Pelicans are ready to hold a fire sale of sorts? That they’re ready to sacrifice this season’s playoff aspirations for the sake of next season and beyond?
That much is unclear. But if Jrue Holiday is the next name to hit the hypothetical chopping block, well, it won’t be too difficult to read between New Orleans’ blurred lines.
