Lonzo Ball will become a restricted free agent this summer, so the future of the previous number 2 pick is unclear. The point guard is having a good season, but the New Orleans Pelicans are probably looking for a trade for him. The Pelicans have themselves to blame for the fact that it has come to this point. What could happen to Ball now?
Was it a first sign of an upcoming trade? The New Orleans Pelicans won in Denver yesterday evening thanks to Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson, but Lonzo Ball was injured with a hip problem.
That can happen, but so close to the trade deadline it is often suspicious if trade candidates miss a game here and there.
The fact is that there have been persistent rumors about the 23-year-old since January. The Point Guard’s contract in New Orleans expires, and Ball becomes a Restricted Free Agent (RFA) after the season because the parties were unable to agree on an early contract extension before the start of the season.
Ball’s agent is Rich Paul, LeBron James’ buddy and the Pelicans have had rather unpleasant experiences with him in the past. It was Paul who publicly called for a trade for his protégé Anthony Davis in January 2019 – out of New Orleans and into the glittering world of Los Angeles. With a few months’ delay, Davis Camp got its request, and AD was traded to the Lakers.
Lonzo Ball: Improved, but trapped in the supporting role
In return, Ball came to the Big Easy and established himself with the Pelicans. His chemistry with franchise star Zion Williamson is undisputed, and he improved his threesome by a good five percentage points with significantly more volume to 38.5 percent this season. Yet the Pels don’t seem averse to trading the former Big Baller.
Kevin O’Connor from The Ringer recently reported that the Chicago Bulls were offering Tomas Satoransky and second round picks, but the Pelicans prefer a young player and first round pick and gratefully declined. Poker has long since started and New Orleans has no good cards.
Even Ball’s extroverted father, LaVar, spoke up again after surprisingly quiet months and publicly called for a trade because, in his opinion, the son was being used incorrectly. Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy recently gave Zion and Brandon Ingram the ball, Ball became more and more of a supporting actor and spot-up shooter.
Lonzo Ball becomes a restricted free agent this summer
For New Orleans, this is the right decision in the long term and the results showed Van Gundy to be right. New Orleans is only 11th in the West (18-24), but the trend is positive with a few slips. Ball became a supporting actor, a specialist. In addition to being fit in the field, there is also the contractual situation. Ingram has already received his maximum contract, Williamson will follow suit in 2023.
The team will be correspondingly expensive if Ball also gets a big contract. And he will: Big guards with his overview and the meanwhile good litter are not a matter of course in the NBA either, so there should be enough interest for Lonzo in a thin free agency market.
In addition to Chicago, Ball should also have desires in Atlanta and according to the Washington Post wake up at the New York Knicks, all teams that would have enough money available in the summer to put the Pelicans under pressure with a large offer. Of course, New Orleans can draw level with any offer due to its ball status as an RFA, but where is the pain threshold?
Bobby Marks from ESPN sees this at around $ 18 million annually, which would be a fair price. But it is well known that the market determines the price. The supply for point guards in the summer is meager, so the value of Ball will automatically rise and Ball offers north of this limit should be available.
