Brandon Ingram trade from Pelicans to Raptors made sense | Pelicans

Brandon Ingram will go down as one of the best players to ever wear a New Orleans Pelicans’ uniform.

No, he wasn’t Chris Paul or Anthony Davis Level Good.

But Ingram, who was traded for Toronto Raptors on Wednesday, stamped his place at the next level.

If you don’t believe me, just look at the numbers.

Ingram ranks in the top 10 in the franchise story in all three of the most important categories.

He is fifth in points, third in assists and 10. in rebounds.

He is also sixth in the game that may come as a surprise when you reflect back on how many games ingram haven’t The game since arriving in New Orleans in 2019 as part of the Davis Agreement.

Of the 439 games, the Pelicans have played since Ingram came to town, he has missed 134 of them. He has only played in 18 games this season. His last match was December 7 against Oklahoma City as he maintained a high quality low ankle displeasure.

I still remember I saw that Ingram was helped to Pelican’s closet space.

“This is perhaps the last time we ever see bee in a Pelican’s’ uniform,” I remember I was thinking of myself that night.

After all, the trade deadline was exactly two months away and Ingram played on an expiring contract.

Then, as Ingram’s rehabilitation stayed longer, the pelicans stopped providing updates on Ingram’s status.

The handwriting was on the wall at the time.

Now Ingram is leading to Toronto in exchange for Bruce Brown, Kelly Olynyk, a first round of selection and a draft of the second round, according to an ESPN report.

He will be over 2,000 miles away from New Orleans. It is also about how far away the pelicans (12-39) are from being playoff challengers. Ingram, Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum and Dejointe Murray era never started.

In fact, Ingram, Williamson and Murray never played a single game together. Ingram and Williamson, who both arrived in New Orleans in 2019, played only 154 games together. This is equivalent to slightly less than two full seasons together for two guys who have been teammates for 5 ½ years.

While it’s always hard for a team to lose one of its best players, you can’t blame the pelicans for making this step. They felt the need to get something in return instead of letting Ingram Sign somewhere else in free agency. The emergence of Trey Murphy, an average of 34.5 points over the last four games, certainly made the decision to move on from Ingram much easier.

Bi doesn’t just stand for Brandon Ingram. It also stands for “Business Intelligence” in this case.

Ingram’s time in New Orleans was highlighted by him who won the most improved award and made an NBA All-Star game. These were to offset lowlights, which include a series of injuries and a gloomy performance in last season’s endgame when Pelicans were swept in the first round of Oklahoma City Thunder.

“It’s tough,” Ingram said that night. “We always knew that it was an opportunity for us to go home tonight. But sitting in that dressing room and it is like ‘cursed, this is our last day.’ “

Wednesday, the evening of the trade deadline, ended up being Ingram’s last day as a pelican. It is a trade that feels much like one of the saints made in early November when they traded Marshon Lattimore. Both Ingram and Lattimore will go down as the best player in their position in their team’s history. Both were plagued by injuries.

Jose Alvarado, one of Ingram’s closest friends on the team, went to social media and released a sad facial semoji moment after the news of the trade happened.

The sad face can also be worn by Pelicans’ fans and Front Office, who lost one of the best players in the franchise history of a career that never really showed its full potential.