The NBA season is still just beginning, but it already seems evident that the New Orleans Pelicans need to fully rebuild. In order to make that happen, the Pelicans trading Jordan Poole to the Houston Rockets would make a ton of sense.
The conversation of whether to keep Zion Williamson or not is one thing since he’s an elite talent at 25 years old. With Poole, he’s good but not close to the player Williamson is.
On the other hand, even with a 3-2 record, the Houston Rockets look good right now. With Kevin Durant on the roster, it’s evident that this team is built to win right now.
With Reed Sheppard disappointing to start the year, it could make sense for the Rockets to trade him away in an attempt to speed up their timeline. Here’s what a possible trade between the Rockets and Pelicans could look like.
This is a PREDICTION, not a REPORT.
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Jordan Poole Trade Proposal to the Houston Rockets
For the Rockets, if they can get another guard to provide an offensive spark, they’ll be in a great spot. Sheppard is supposed to be the answer there, but at 21 years old, it seems like he needs more time.
The problem is that the Rockets shouldn’t just wait on him with Durant on their team. Durant is 37 years old, and it’s time to win now. To make the money work, here’s the most likely deal between both sides.
For the Rockets, they would give up Sheppard, Steven Adams, Clint Capela, and Tari Eason. In return, the Pelicans would then give up Poole, their 2030 second round pick, and 2032 second round pick.
While not all of these pieces help the Pelicans right now, getting Sheppard and Eason back makes a ton of sense for where this franchise is right now. On the Rockets’ side, they’re giving up future value but not a lot of production this year.
Other Jordan Poole Landing Spots
It’s not as if this is the first time anyone has brought up the idea of Poole being traded.
Daniel Alameda of TWSN wrote an article about why the Minnesota Timberwolves should send over a deal for Poole recently.
Alameda would go on to explain that, “Minnesota could seriously use another guard that can create offense to make life easier on Anthony Edwards as well as being an excellent spot-up three point shooter. They have Donte DiVincenzo, but he’s a much better fit coming off the bench, whereas Poole could slot right in next to Edwards as a starter.”
These are great points, and if the Rockets aren’t interested, the Timberwolves could be a very realistic option as well. Between the two sides, though, the Rockets have the more complaining trade piece, which is Sheppard.
Jordan Poole Stats
Last year, Poole put up some fairly productive stats through 68 games. During that span, Poole had 20.5 PPG, 4.5 AST, and 3.0 REB.
That marks the fourth straight year since the 2021-22 season that Poole has gone over 17 PPG, but during that span, he’s also never had more than 21 PPG. While Poole is still young, it seems like you know what to expect out of him at this point.
Jordan Poole Contract
The contract Poole is on right now does affect his value, and it made things hard to figure out a deal that could go through. Per Spotrac, Poole is on a four year deal worth $128 million dollars.
That means Poole will hit free agency next in 2027-28 when he’s 28 years old. Based on the mock trade proposed above, the idea of swapping Jordan Poole and Reed Sheppard makes a ton of sense on both ends.
