The New Orleans Pelicans have won three straight games to get their record up to 16-27 and they are somehow just four games out of the eighth spot in the Western Conference. The Pelicans got off to such a horrific start this season that they were involved in a bunch of trade rumors. Those trade rumors have quieted a little bit recently but there is still a chance they could be active before the Feb. 18th deadline. Ryan Anderson is a player they have been getting a lot of calls about but they prefer to trade Eric Gordon, according to Sam Amick of USA Today Sports.
Despite their recent success the Pelicans are not happy with how this season has gone so far and they are looking to shake up their roster. There are a few players on the Pelicans that have expiring contracts, including Gordon and Anderson, that they could potentially move before the trade deadline.
Anderson is the most attractive trade target on the team because he is one of the best stretch four's in the league and his contract is up after this year so the Pelicans would seemingly be willing to trade him. The Pelicans know that they likely won't be able to pay Anderson what he wants in free agency this summer so the wise move would be to get something for him while they could now. Instead the Pelicans would be happy to hang on to Anderson for the remainder of the year unless they are enamored with an offer they get for him.
The preferred route for New Orleans to go down is reportedly trading Gordon. Gordon too is set to become a free agent this summer and will likely be playing elsewhere next season anyway. Gordon hasn't had a great season for the Pelicans but he was one of the few players that was able to stay on the court until recently. Gordon broke his right ring finger and required surgery last week but the Pelicans have won both games he has missed so far. The fact that the team has played well without Gordon has made him even more expendable, the issue is that trading him won't be easy.
Any team that trades for Gordon will probably be using him as a rental player and the fact that he is injured would cause major concern for any perspective trade partners. Gordon likely won't be able to get back on the court until after the trade deadline so the likelihood of a team trading for him has gone way down considering the risk he entails.
It is unknown exactly what type of interets there was in Gordon on the trade market before the injury but it seems as though he is likey to finish this year in New Orleans now. The Pelicans could decide to stand pat at the deadline because of Gordon's injury or maybe now they will revisit the possibility of trading Anderson. The power forward would likely bring a nice return to New Orleans as he is a guy a lot of teams would like to get their hands on.
