3. New Orleans Pelicans
This destination isn’t as obvious. At the same time, it is very obvious. Jrue Holiday exploded in the post-season last year and it was because of Rajon Rondo. Playing the shooting guard spot allows Holiday to play off the ball and focus on putting the ball in the basket.
Moving Holiday to the two also moves E’Twaun Moore to the bench who could be a legit sixth man of the year contender. George Hill would be an absolute quality addition to an improving team. Holiday and Anthony Davis got a taste of the playoffs last season and Hill’s veteran leadership could be the key for this team to take the next step.
The Pelicans currently have Elfrid Payton and Frank Jackson as their point guard options and that is simply not going to cut it in the loaded Western Conference, or in any conference for that matter. They probably have the biggest need for a point guard among all playoff teams.
Hill has proven that he can be quite a valuable contributor to winning teams and can provide a blend of effective defensive impact, catch-and-shoot ability, and some playmaking, which is exactly the type of skill-sets that the Pelicans need.
It is difficult to come up with hypothetical trade packages for the Pelicans but they now have all of their first-round picks again, so that could be a start. The Cavaliers would have to be fine with taking on Solomon Hill’s contract for the sake of matching salary.
