Draft night trades can be a blessing in disguise to some teams, but they could also be a nightmare for the teams that miss out on young talent in the draft. Many people were expecting moves to be made this offseason, but no one saw this coming. There were many discussions on what the Pelicans should do, and they went out and traded a valuable unprotected first-round pick, despite not seeming ready to win this upcoming season. The draft night trade that they made involved trading up in the draft to the 13th overall pick. They then used this pick to select F/C Derik Queen.
The Risk of this Draft Night Trade for the Pelicans
What this draft night trade now does is put an intense amount of pressure on not only the front office but the players. With how competitive the West looks next season, the Pelicans could easily find themselves around the 12-15 seeds. Thus giving away a lottery pick that could end up being a top 5 pick in a loaded draft class.
What turns all of this into a huge mess is that the Pelicans haven’t had the best luck when it comes to staying healthy. In the NBA, availability plays a crucial role in your team’s success. The Pelicans were one of the most injury-riddled teams in the entire NBA. With Zion Williamson’s injury history at the forefront of it all, things could take a drastic turn in New Orleans. Dejounte Murray will also be sidelined for a significant amount of time with an Achilles tear.
Jun 25, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Derik Queen reacts on stage after being selected as the 13th pick by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Derik Queen who they traded that valuable unprotected first round pick for is also hurt as he has suffered a ligament tear. It could start to look really bad in New Orleans pretty fast and pretty soon if this continues to be a problem. They do have some young talent in Trey Murphy, Herb Jones and their rookie Jeremiah Fears.
Where does this Draft Night Trade put the Pelicans?
This leaves New Orleans in a very vulnerable position, as they are really rolling this dice. They either need to be a very good team this next season, or they need to at least see flashes of Derik Queen being a great player. They very much so need at least one of these results to happen because they could be missing out on a franchise altering player in next years draft.
There will be a bunch of talk on if this was a good or bad trade from many around the league. The realization of this is that if this does not work out and the Hawks end up with a top 5 pick in the draft next year. Depending on who they would select and how Derik Queen pans out for the Pelicans, this could end up being another one of those awful draft night trade mishaps that could set the franchise back a decade. There could be a real shake-up to the Pelicans’ front office and roster if this draft-night trade doesn’t work out.
