Three weeks remain until the NBA trade deadline. Teams are gearing up to finalize their rosters before the second half of the season begins. With that said, one of the teams looking to reinforce their lineup is the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors have previously expressed interest in acquiring New Orleans Pelicans forward Herb Jones. This is mainly due to the Golden State’s lack of defensive presence. However, it appears that a trade may not come to fruition as an NBA insider revealed the Pelicans’ asking price if they were to trade Jones.
Pelicans Prefer Rebuild Pieces in Exchange for Herb Jones
It’s no secret that the Pelicans plan on commencing a rebuild soon. After shipping Brandon Ingram to the Toronto Raptors, it’s clear that New Orleans is ready to move on and start anew.
True enough, it seems that all signs are pointing towards that direction when NBA insider Brett Siegel revealed the Pelicans’ asking price for Jones. Siegel reported that New Orleans would want a couple of first-round picks and young players in exchange for Jones.
The insider also mentioned that it’s the same case for Trey Murphy III, but instead of two draft picks, they would rather get three first-round picks.
“There are several teams around the league interested in both Murphy and Jones despite the Pelicans continuing to signal that they don’t want to trade either player,” Siegel reported.
“Still, league executives insist this is due to the Pelicans not receiving enough value and the asking price they have set for both players: two first-round picks for Jones and three first-round picks for Murphy, plus additional assets in the form of young talent.”
Looking at Jones’ numbers, he’s a player who truly specializes in creating stops for his team. This season, he’s averaging 1.6 steals per game. The highest he’s ever averaged in steals in his career was 1.9 steals.
With that in mind, the Warriors have heavily scouted Jones and would like to add a player of his caliber to their roster. However, it’s easier said than done. Given the Pelicans’ asking price for Jones, it might be difficult to meet their requirements.
As of this writing, the Warriors have only one first-round pick for the upcoming 2026 draft. They could throw in their first-round pick for the 2027 draft to sweeten the deal. However, trading young talent could be a deal breaker for the Warriors.
This season, the Warriors have done their best to surround Stephen Curry with a variety of young players. Giving them up might be detrimental to the team as the majority of the team’s core are league veterans.
However, they do have the option to trade Jonathan Kuminga, given how the Warriors have expressed interest in letting him go. That’s only if the Pelicans want Kuminga on their team.
Whatever the case may be, we’ll have to wait until after Jan. 14 regarding a potential Jones trade. Jones is ineligible to be traded until after Jan. 14 due to the three-year, $68 million extension he signed in July 2025.
