According to NBA insider Kelly Iko of The Athletic, the Houston Rockets won’t trade Alperen Sengun to the New Orleans Pelicans for Brandon Ingram.
The Pelicans are open to moving Ingram this offseason.
“For example, Houston would love to add a player like Donovan Mitchell but recent reports suggest the All-NBA guard is likely to sign an extension to stay in Cleveland,” Iko wrote. “In notebook 1.0, New Orleans’ Brandon Ingram was mentioned as a player seen in a lower tier than Mitchell and in recent days, rumors have swirled about the Pelicans dangling Ingram in trade talks and in one iteration, a hypothetical Ingram-for-Alperen Şengün swap was mentioned, but the Rockets have no interest, team sources said. League sources said New Orleans also contacted the Philadelphia 76ers concerning a possible Ingram trade.”
Ingram averaged 20.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.6 blocks for the Pelicans this season while shooting 49.2% from the floor, 35.5% from 3 and 80.1% from the free-throw line. He’ll make $36 million next season in the final year of his contract.
For the Rockets, Sengun averaged 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.7 blocks while shooting 53.7% from the field, 29.7% from beyond the arc and 69.3% from the free-throw line. He’s eligible to sign a rookie-scale extension this offseason.
The Oklahoma City Thunder swept the Pelicans in the first round of the 2024 playoffs, while the Rockets missed the postseason again.
Houston has the third overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. The team is very interested in acquiring Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets, but the Nets have told teams they’re keeping Bridges.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Pelicans are expected to aggressively explore the trade market for Ingram this offseason. New Orleans hasn’t won a playoff series since 2018.
The Pelicans acquired Ingram from the Los Angeles Lakers in the blockbuster Anthony Davis trade. New Orleans is only 144-143 with Ingram in the lineup.
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