Pelicans Mock Draft: New Orleans Trades into Top-10 With Polarizing Trey Murphy Move

The Pelicans give up a ton to ensure they land the prospect they are targeting in the lottery in this final mock draft.

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The New Orleans Pelicans don't have a first-round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, but they are one of the teams to watch on June 23rd. The front office has been aggressively trying to trade into the lottery, which means that the Pelicans may end up with one of the most coveted prospects in the draft.

What should Pelicans fans expect on Tuesday? What's a realistic draft scenario where the Pelicans land a lottery pick and select their preferred prospect? Let's take a look.

1. Washington Wizards: Darryn Peterson
2. Utah Jazz: AJ Dybantsa
3. Memphis Grizzlies: Cam Boozer
4. Chicago Bulls: Caleb Wilson

The top three of the draft will be Peterson, Dybantsa, and Boozer in some order. This has been the case for months now, and barring a minor miracle, it's unlikely to change with only 24 hours left until the draft. Wilson will be one of the most obvious draft selections ever as the consensus No. 4 prospect on the board.

Peterson only worked out for the Wizards, and Dybantsa only had formal visits with Washington and Utah. They will likely go 1-2.

5. LA Clippers: Keaton Wagler
6. Brooklyn Nets: Mikel Brown Jr.
7. Sacramento Kings: Darius Acuff Jr.

The real draft starts with the No. 5 pick. There is a lot of speculation here, including trade possibilities. The most likely scenario, according to the latest intel, however, is that all three teams here stand pat and select a talented guard.

This part of the draft is very point guard-heavy. The Clippers are likely to choose one of Wagler and Brown, and the Nets are expected to choose the best point guard available in the draft. The Kings have reportedly been eyeing Acuff, making this a no-brainer selection for them.

This brings us to Atlanta's No. 8 pick. Sam Vecenie of The Athletic reported a few days ago that the Hawks "are open for business with this pick," including trade-up and trade-down scenarios.

The Hawks have been a favorite trade partner of the Pelicans over the last couple of years, including in the 2025 NBA Draft. New Orleans reportedly has interest in trading into the lottery, with Tennessee's Nate Ament being their rumored target. A Pelicans-Hawks trade built around the No. 8 pick makes some sense here.

8. New Orleans Pelicans (traded from ATL): Nate Ament

The only Pelicans player who can bring back the No. 8 pick in the draft is Trey Murphy. Sure, New Orleans can give up future assets to acquire this pick, but Atlanta is in win-now mode and is unlikely to be interested in draft capital.

A fair trade scenario has Murphy going to Atlanta while New Orleans gets back the No. 8 pick to select Ament, in addition to Zaccharie Risacher, Corey Kispert, and another future first-round pick.

Risacher is a worthy flier as the former first-round pick should still have some intrigue and upside. Kispert is an elite three-point shooter who can make up for some of the offense the Pelicans are losing with Murphy. A future first-round pick will help the Pelicans restock their asset coffers for more moves in the future.

This is clearly a risky trade that would be highly polarizing among Pelicans fans. In terms of pure trade value, this is a good return for Murphy. In terms of the overall vision of the franchise, however, it would lead to serious questions.

Ament has some potential, but he is very far from being a finished product. He has the athletic and physical tools to be a modern, prototypical wing, similar to Risacher, but requires significant refinement on both ends of the floor to be a starter. He will likely need a couple of years before he is an impactful player, which means that the Pelicans would be taking a step back in the immediate future.

Reports out of New Orleans suggest that the Pelicans front office is very aggressive in trying to acquire a lottery pick. Whether this is a good idea or not is a different question, but Pelicans fans should prepare for a scenario similar to the one outlined here.