Herbert Jones and Trey Murphy III have been the subjects of trade speculation for... years? Years? Years. Despite the ongoing interest from rival teams, the New Orleans Pelicans have held tight to both players, refusing incoming trade calls on their wings. They may come to regret that in due time.
On an episode of the Third Apron Podcast, Yossi Gozlan made the case that Pelicans may have taken a page out of the Chicago Bulls' playbook. As time passes, their top guys are losing value. Whether that be due to burning years of their contracts, missing chances to trade them at their peak, or whatever else, New Orleans may ultimately end up settling if (or when) they do blow things up.
That bodes well for the Los Angeles Lakers. Jones and Murphy have both enjoyed their fair bit of links to the Lakers over the years. That should not go away given that Los Angeles is still searching for a fifth starter beside Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, Walker Kessler, and Quentin Grimes.
The part of all this that stands to benefit the Lakers most is the potential for Jones and Murphy to see their value sink. Given that Los Angeles surrendered a ton of their trade assets to acquire Kessler, they are not primed to meet high asking prices. A discounted rate for either Herb or Trey would work in their favor.
Pelicans missing their best trade window improves the Lakers' chances moving forward
Let us be honest about something at this point of the conversation: Murphy should still project to be unattainable for the Lakers, even if his value is due for a drop. There may still be desperate teams out there willing to surrender multiple first-round picks for him. Los Angeles cannot compete with that.
Jones is where things get interesting.
Herb is coming off his worst offensive season as a pro. If the Pelicans get to the 2027 trade deadline with the intention to sell, and Jones has not significantly revived faith in his ability on that end, the Pelicans wing suddenly begins to look a lot more realistic as a target.
His looming contract extension starts to look less team-friendly and more concerning if another rough offensive campaign is ahead. Even for all of his defensive talent, $22.5 million a year for a guy who cannot deliver on one end of the court is a lot.
The Lakers should have willingness to push for Jones despite those concerns. This is the defensive ace that Los Angeles would love to have on the wings. Offensively, you could not ask for someone better than Luka Doncic to help put you in the best position to succeed.
Jones has always been the subject of much fascination. The high asking prices previously left him out of reach for the Lakers. If New Orleans truly missed their best chance to get a strong return for Herb, Los Angeles could be a huge beneficiary of that mismanagement.
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