Jordan Poole is a Pelican
Instant reaction.
Well, here we are. Less than 48 hours removed from the conclusion of the 2024/25 NBA season and less than 48 hours away from the NBA Draft.
And despite where we are in the calendar, I’ve somehow been given a green light to talk about my New Orleans Pelicans, who just traded CJ McCollum, Kelly Olynyk, and a future second round pick to the Washington Wizards for Jordan Poole, Saddiq Bey, and the 40th overall pick in this year’s draft.
Outgoings
My initial reaction as a Pelicans fan was sadness.
I’ve been a huge believer in CJ McCollum since the day he was acquired from the Portland Trail Blazers in 2022, and truly felt at the time that CJ’s Pelicans tenure was going to see the team transition into a true contender by the end of his years as the 20ppg three-level scorer that he has been for so many years. Injuries, among other things, have prevented that version of reality.
Regardless, his time in New Orleans should be celebrated. His acquisition came at a time when he was desperately needed. With Zion Williamson out for the season, first-year head coach Willie Green was leading a spirited, undermanned group spearheaded by Brandon Ingram and including then-rookies Herb Jones, Jose Alvarado, and Trey Murphy III. McCollum’s veteran presence, know-how and elite scoring powered the team over the line down the stretch and into the 2022 playoffs, where they almost forced a 64-win Phoenix Suns team all the way to seven games.
McCollum remained a supremely talented offensive threat and all-around leader throughout his three and a half seasons as a Pelican. He played on rosters capable of making deep playoff runs. Those, sadly, never materialised.
I thought Olynyk could’ve fit nicely next to Williamson. He did for a few meaningless games towards the back end of last season. Oh well.
Incomings
Exchanging CJ McCollum for Jordan Poole does a few things. One thing it doesn’t do is mature the locker room. But it does a few things.
For one, the Pelicans are younger. At just 26 years old with a championship pedigree, Poole is entering his prime years. His career-high 20.5 points a night last season as a Wizard - shooting just under 38% from 3-point range - closely mirror McCollum’s offensive production. At his best, Poole is a tantalising offensive prospect. It’s a reasonably like-for-like replacement while acquiring a guy seven years younger.
Bey is also 26. He hasn’t played a game since tearing his ACL against (guess who?) the Pelicans in March 2024. His scoring totals and shooting numbers have fluctuated throughout his NBA career, though he showed promise before injury as an offensive weapon during spells as a Detroit Piston and Atlanta Hawk.
The Pelicans are also cheaper, at least in 2025/26. McCollum was due just over $30 million in the final year of his contract entering next season. New Orleans also shreds Olynyk’s expiring money.
Bey and Poole both have two years left on their respective deals, the former making just under $7 million annually while the latter, thanks to a contract signed in the wake of his championship run as a Golden State Warrior, is due roughly $65 million between now and the summer of 2027.
The deal provides a little bit of short-term relief for a Pelicans franchise that has never paid the luxury tax while simultaneously ridding itself of expiring assets.
Neither acquisition has shown much defensive upside throughout his career to date, though the same can be said for the newest Washington Wizards. This move, at least as I react immediately, is about getting younger, cheaper, and more dynamic.
Joe Dumars took over last month as the Pelicans’ head of basketball operations. This move is a considerable splash to make in one’s first summer; one that signals a willingness to embrace change and take risks. It feels to me like a statement move by the architect of the 2004 champion Detroit Pistons.
There was certainly a case to be made for running it back in New Orleans next season. I have been pushing for it in Pelicans circles, with full belief in the roster as it was constructed when I woke up this morning. That being said, this is a breath of fresh air. The McCollum era of Pelicans basketball, after all, has been plagued by disappointment (albeit to no fault of his own).
Poole and Williamson, in theory and hopefully actuality, are such a fascinating offensive duo. Bey offers a great bit of scoring touch for a team often in need of it from role players amidst constant injury struggles. Both additions will see a little more of the ball at the start of next season as point guard Dejounte Murray recovers from his torn Achilles tendon.
It’s a brave move by my New Orleans Pelicans. I’m truly sad to see CJ McCollum go. But I’m excited (as is often the case with this headache-inducing franchise that I know and love so much) about the prospect of this new-look team.