Major NBA Trade Ideas Sends Zion Williamson to Lakers in Star Swap

Blockbuster NBA trade idea sends New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson to the Los Angeles Lakers in star swap

Mar 4, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) controls the ball against Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht (4) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The New Orleans Pelicans are set to enter a new era under the new head of basketball operations, Joe Dumars. Dumars was with the Pistons when they won the NBA Finals in 2005, making trades such as Grant Hill for Ben Wallace and drafting Tayshaun Prince late in the first round in 2002. Now, he enters a situation in New Orleans will plenty of questions to answer.

One of those revolves around Zion Williamson, as the former number one overall pick is a star when he's on the court, but his availability has kept him from becoming one of the top players in the NBA. He played in just 30 games this past season, but was exceptionally good after the All-Star break with two triple-doubles. However, both sides might be better off with a change of scenery.

Zion Williamson stats in 2024-25:

— 24.7 PPG
— 6.6 RPG
— 4.3 APG
— 59% FG
— 32.7% 3P
— 30 Games Played

Breakout season incoming ? pic.twitter.com/Tz2I0iTevv

— PelicansMuse (@Pelicans_Musee) May 14, 2025

A team that always finds itself in the mix for landing star players is the Los Angeles Lakers, who surprised the NBA world with their trade for Luka Doncic. In this mock trade, the Lakers make yet another blockbuster trade this summer, to land the Pelicans' star Williamson.

Los Angeles Lakers receive: Zion Williamson, Bruce Brown (via sign-and-trade)

New Orleans Pelicans receive: Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber, 2030 1st via LAL (rights to swap)

Apr 16, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) reacts to making a basket against Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis (3) during the second half of a play-in game of the 2024 NBA playoffs at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Looking at this deal for the Lakers, they move off from Austin Reaves and avoid having to pay him in the 2026 offseason, with the expectation that he'll decline his $14.9 million player option for the 2026-27 season. In addition to Williamson, who could be that interior scoring force for them, they also land a quality backup guard in Bruce Brown to either start or be their sixth man.

As for the Pelicans, moving off Williamson gives them more flexibility heading into the 2025 NBA Draft, as they could target replacements for him like Collin Murray-Boyles, Asa Newell, Carter Bryant, or even Derik Queen. Additionally, they could pay Reaves and have him be the CJ McCollum replacement, giving the Pelicans a 20-point-per-game scorer for years to come.

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