[Groundhog]

To be honest I think it's a great trade for New Orleans. I don't think Ball is anything particularly special but he is a solid defender, and a Ball/Holiday backcourt could be pretty special defensively. Ingram I haven't been sold on since day 1, but he's still 21 years old and if his shooting stroke improves he's solid depth at the 2/3 spots.

Plus the #4 pick (if they keep it) gives them a lot of options. There's a drop off after the top 3 guys in this draft, but there's a bunch of interesting guys in this draft. Pelicans can afford to be a bit unconventional with the pick and even select for need. Zion's teammate Reddish would be maybe the textbook selection, or take a flyer on someone like Doumbouya.

Ironically they now finally have the depth they never could get to surround AD, it just cost them AD to do it... And I think it will translate to more wins in a season or two, especially if Zion lives up to the hype.

As for the Lakers, well... again, what else can they assemble around LeBron and AD. I don't rate Kuzma that highly but he at least fills out their frontcourt, but they'll need to do better than veteran cast-offs like Rondo and Beasley et al... will the drama of the Lakers organisation impact their ability to land vets to compete now in a wide-open league? Is Kemba a chance in LA? I don't think just landing AD makes them an instant title favourite, it's going to take a few more pieces.