The New Orleans Pelicans hired new management at the end of last season, bringing in Joe Dumars as President of Basketball Operations and Troy Weaver as Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations to run the front office. They were active, including making a pair of draft picks trades to move up and take Maryland big man Derik Queen with the 13th pick of the 2025 NBA Draft.
They first executed a trade with the Indiana Pacers during the NBA Finals, sending the Pacers back their 2026 first-round pick in exchange for the No. 23 pick in this year's draft. That was more ammunition for Dumars and Weaver to add a second talented rookie to the roster, and given that the Pacers were playing in the NBA Finals, it seemed like a reasonable bet to make.
Then mere days later, Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles in Game 7, and the Pacers' outlook for 2025-26 changed dramatically. Plagued by injuries to start the season alongside Haliburton missing the entire year, the Pacers began 0-5 and just pulled off their first win Saturday night. If the season ended today, they would flip a coin with the Washington Wizards for the third spot in the Draft Lottery.
Armed with the No. 23 pick, the Pelicans were not done. After they selected Oklahoma point guard Jeremiah Fears with the No. 8 pick in the draft, they began calling around looking to use that 23rd pick to trade back into the lottery and take Queen. To incentivize teams, they offered the better of their pick and the Milwaukee Bucks' pick in 2026, entirely unprotected.
The Atlanta Hawks gladly took the offer, likely giggling the entire time they were on the phone calling it into the league office. The Pelicans made a bet that they would be much better this season, banking on the return and health of Zion Williamson, Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones -- while somehow also believing enough in two young offense-first rookies that they could help them win right away.
The Pelicans are terrible and on track to lose their pick
The entire NBA world saw the potential disaster awaiting the Pelicans, and that has come to pass immediately to start the season. The Pelicans are 0-5, tied with the Brooklyn Nets for the worst record in the league. The Nets have stripped their roster of everything resembling a winning player to tank this season; the Pels thought they would be so good that they traded away their first-round pick.
If the Pelicans had done nothing last spring -- if Joe Dumars and Troy Weaver had gone on a months-long cruise without internet or phone signal -- they would be holding two of the four most valuable draft picks in the 2026 NBA Draft. The lottery would obviously have something to say about where they ultimately landed, but if things stayed how they are, the Pelicans could very easily have two of the top three picks next June.
The 2026 NBA Draft class looks absolutely loaded at the top. AJ Dybantsa is a 6'9" athletic marvel as a scoring wing. Cam Boozer is a double-double machine as the modern version of a two-way power forward. Darryn Peterson is the favorite to go No. 1 as a 6'5" do-literally-everything guard. Even if the picks slip down a few slots, names like Nate Ament, Caleb Wilson and Mikel Brown Jr. look like future stars as well.
The Pelicans could have had two elite prospects to completely transform their franchise. The thought of AJ Dybantsa and Cam Boozer on one team seems like a fanciful dream, but it was so close to a reality for New Orleans. Instead, the franchise has failed its fans once again, and they will have to watch as the Atlanta Hawks and Indiana Pacers draft top-tier talent that could have been theirs.
It's the sort of bitter start to a tenure that never goes away. Dumars and Weaver have already defined their tenure in New Orleans. Their funeral will be the 2026 NBA Draft.