Pelicans' Cap Crunch Forces Creative Moves | NBA News

NBA free agency looms, and the New Orleans Pelicans are in a bind—deep needs, shallow pockets. With a luxury tax avoidance history, they’re stuck under the apron and can’t afford big free agent splashes. Their offseason has been quiet: drafting Jaron Pierre Jr., picking up Karlo Matkovic, and letting Kevon Looney walk. Trade talks are swirling, especially around Trey Murphy, but teams won’t meet their three-first-round-pick ask. Herb Jones could be a trade chip, but Jordan Poole and Dejounte Murray aren’t drawing much interest. Jaylen Brown? Not happening. Their biggest hole? A starting center. With Derik Queen and Yves Missi as the only options, they’re eyeing Rob Williams and Mitchell Robinson—plus Mo Wagner and Nikola Vucevic—as affordable, high-impact targets to fill the void. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/bedb92d39ea59569