The New Orleans Pelican swings in the late lottery in the NBA Draft, and believes Nick Wright has made a big mistake.
The New Orleans Pelicans left the 2025 NBA Draft as one of the biggest winners of the night.
The Pelicans made some very strong strategic moves, both in their draft introductions and in their draft nights themselves.
Prior to the NBA Draft, the Pelicans traded CJ McCollum for Jordan pool, improved the backcourt and added another younger piece.
And during the NBA Draft, the Pelicans traded for Derrick Queen, the #13 pick for the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for a #23 pick and an unprotected 2026 first-round pick.
However, Nick Wright believes the Pelican has given up too much in trade. And he made it very clear to them with an offensive tirade during the show.
Nick Wright was livestreaming his reaction to the 2025 NBA Draft. Fox Sports Analysts lost cool after seeing the New Orleans Pelican traded for the Hawks’ #13 pick.
In particular, he denounced the Pelican for giving up the unprotected 2026 first round pick. Wright believes the Pelican is irresponsible in trading such valuable assets.
“New Orleans just f —–salvaged the unprotected first-round pick next year from 23 to 13.
“It could be the most reckless draft day trade I’ve seen in five years. Who is thinking about New Orleans without any respect?”
The 2026 NBA Draft has some very exciting outlooks like AJ Dybantsa and Cameron Boozer. And the Pelicans may have given up on the opportunity to land those stars just to raise the prospects of decent centers.
After the 2025 NBA Draft and the deals made by the New Orleans Pelicans, this is what their potential start five looks like.
| position | Player |
| Point Guard | Jeremiah fears/Dejoan Murray |
| Shooting Guard | Dejounte Murray/Jordan Poole |
| A small front | Trey Murphy III |
| Power Forward | Zion Williamson |
| center | Derrick Queen |
The group has a strong fusion of star players, veteran talent and young stars with high potential. The Pelican may not be competitive anytime soon with this opening 5, but it is undoubtedly likely to grow into a sleeper team in the coming months.
However, Dumars and Pelicans look at the three security guard options and wonder if there is a need to do trade.
They may be ready to move on from Dejoan Murray this offseason as the Pelicans land both Pool and Jeremiah’s horrors.