The Pelicans Are Quietly Holding One of the NBA’s Most Powerful Trade Chips - And It All Ties Back to Giannis
It’s been a rough ride in New Orleans this season - no way around it. A 3-19 record through 22 games, a bottom-three net rating, a revolving door of injuries, and a midseason coaching change have all but buried the Pelicans in the Western Conference standings. But in the middle of all that chaos, a surprising development may have cracked open a window of opportunity for the franchise - and it starts with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
On ESPN Radio Cleveland, longtime NBA insider Brian Windhorst dropped a notable update about the Bucks superstar. According to Windhorst, Antetokounmpo requested a trade during the 2025 offseason - a move that didn’t lead to a deal, as Milwaukee’s front office stood firm and kept him in town for at least one more year.
But now, with the Bucks struggling in games without him and uncertainty swirling around the franchise’s direction, league chatter is picking up again. Windhorst hinted that many around the league don’t expect Giannis to be in a Bucks uniform next season.
That buzz got even louder when ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Antetokounmpo and his agent are set to meet with the Bucks to discuss his future.
So what does all this have to do with the Pelicans?
A lot, actually.
Back in 2020, when New Orleans traded Jrue Holiday to Milwaukee, they secured swap rights to the Bucks’ 2027 first-round pick. At the time, it was a forward-thinking move - the kind of asset that might not mean much immediately, but could pay off down the line. Fast forward to now, and that pick swap is suddenly looking like one of the most valuable trade chips in the league.
Here’s why: If the Bucks do end up trading Giannis, it’s highly likely they’ll shift into a full rebuild. And without him, the on-court product has already taken a major hit - Milwaukee is just 1-6 in games Giannis doesn’t play this season. If that’s any indication of what a post-Giannis Bucks team might look like, we’re potentially talking about a bottom-tier team in the East by 2026-27.
And that 2027 pick? It becomes gold.
New Orleans would have the right to swap their own pick for Milwaukee’s - and if the Bucks are near the bottom of the standings, that could mean a top-five selection. That kind of asset is the stuff general managers dream about. Whether the Pelicans decide to keep it and draft a franchise-altering player or flip it for a proven star, they’re holding a card that could change the trajectory of their rebuild.
Even more intriguing: if Milwaukee decides they want to control their own draft destiny in 2027 - especially in a post-Giannis world - they may have to come calling. That puts New Orleans in the driver’s seat. They could negotiate directly with the Bucks or entertain offers from other teams looking to acquire that pick as part of a larger deal for Antetokounmpo.
The Pelicans’ young core - Jeremiah Fears, Trey Murphy III, Derik Queen - already gives them a solid foundation. But adding a premium asset like a top-five pick in a stacked draft or using it as a trade piece to bring in a star-caliber player? That’s how you accelerate a rebuild.
So while the focus around the league is on where Giannis might land next, don’t overlook the ripple effects. The Pelicans may be buried in the standings right now, but they’re sitting on a potential kingmaker in the 2027 pick swap. And in a league where timing and leverage are everything, New Orleans might just hold the key to one of the biggest moves of the next NBA calendar year.
Quietly, they’ve got one of the most powerful chips on the board. Now it’s just a matter of how - and when - they decide to play it.