Lonzo Ball Pitch To Warriors At Trade Deadline, Revealed

The New Orleans Pelicans were seemingly high on Golden State Warriors swingman Kelly Oubre Jr. ahead of the NBA trade deadline.

The Pelicans reportedly offered the Dubs point guard Lonzo Ball and a draft pick in exchange for Oubre, per the Rogues Bogues podcast. The Warriors declined said offer.

This offer is intriguing on multiple levels.

Both Ball and Oubre were thought to be available ahead of the deadline. Neither player changed teams.

The Pelicans had previously shown an interest in giving more minutes to their young backcourt of Kira Lewis Jr. and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. It appears New Orleans had more interest in adding wing scoring and athleticism while possibly relying on Lewis to soak up minutes at the point guard spot in the event of a Ball trade. The Pelicans might also have been looking to move Ball–a restricted free agent this summer–due to impending salary concerns.

Meanwhile, there had been reports the Warriors were aggressively shopping Oubre, who will be unrestricted this summer. Ball, might have given Golden State added playmaking and perimeter shooting. However, it could have been complicated for them to re-sign Ball, given the state of their future books.

Instead, both New Orleans and Golden State stood mostly pat at the deadline. The Pelicans are a half-game back of the Warriors for the 10th seed in the Western Conference, which is the very edge of the play-in tournament picture.

The two teams that spent the deadline negotiating a possible Ball-Oubre swap will need both those players to elevate their play, in order for their respective teams to reach the play-in tournament.