The signing of Kristaps Porzingis to a two-year, $40 million contract gives the Golden State Warriors a new piece to help unlock a trade with the New Orleans Pelicans for Trey Murphy III in the coming weeks.
Not only does Porzingis' new deal align almost perfectly with Murphy's contract, but the Pelicans desperate need for a quality center could give the Warriors an edge over rivals if they put the Latvian big man on the table.
Kristaps Porzingis' new contract could unlock Trey Murphy III trade
Golden State have been strongly interested in Murphy since last offseason, and rumors of his potential departure from the Pelicans have been consistent since, including in the lead up and during last month's NBA Draft.
According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype on Thursday, the Warriors, along with the Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, L.A. Clippers and Atlanta Hawks, still have varying degrees of interest in Murphy. Scotto also reports that the price in a trade for the 26-year-old has been lowered from four to three first-round picks.
Golden State may still not be willing to throw three first-round picks in a Murphy trade, but they could have another asset New Orleans are interested in through Porzingis who would fill a major need for Jahmahl Mosley in his first season as head coach.
The Pelicans have a clear lack of center quality and depth, particularly after declining the team option on former Warrior big man Kevon Looney for next season. Yves Missi is yet to fully prove himself as a starting quality center who can log big minutes, Derik Queen should be more of a power forward than a five entering his second year, and DeAndre Jordan has been brought back for leadership value more than anything else.
Kristaps Porzingis could be an excellent fit for the Pelicans
If New Orleans remain determined to build a team around former number one overall pick Zion Williamson, then they should absolutely be looking to pair him with a floor spacing big man like Porzingis.
Sure there would be risks given Porzingis' health and injury history, but those are mitigated by this new contract where only $3 million of his salary is guaranteed for the 2027-28 season. It makes sense on paper, it's just whether Williamson and Porzingis can actually get on the floor together.
The problem for the Warriors is that they'd be losing their only quality starting center in the process. However, if it can land them a dream target in Murphy who they've wanted desperately, it may be a situation where you just figure out the center spot in an alternative move afterwards.
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