By Gee Bino | The Who Dat Daily

The New Orleans Pelicans are moving on from Jordan Hawkins in a trade designed to create financial flexibility and help complete their Bennedict Mathurin signing.

ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Tuesday that New Orleans is sending Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round draft pick and a future second-round pick swap to the Memphis Grizzlies for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson. Source: Charania’s report

The New Orleans Pelicans are trading Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round pick and a future second-round pick swap to the Memphis Grizzlies for AJ Johnson and Taj Gibson, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/JLvDjv9clc

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 8, 2026

For Pelicans fans, the central question is whether the team is using that flexibility to build a better rotation. The return should be evaluated alongside the planned Mathurin addition, while still accounting for the young players and draft assets New Orleans is giving up.

What each team receives

Memphis receives	New Orleans receives
Jordan Hawkins	AJ Johnson
Micah Peavy	Taj Gibson
One future second-round pick
One future second-round pick swap

A pick swap is the right to exchange selections under agreed conditions. It should not be described as another outright second-round pick. The report cited above does not specify the years or protections.

Why New Orleans made the move

ESPN cap analyst Bobby Marks reported that the transaction saves New Orleans approximately $5.7 million in salary and helps clear the path for Mathurin. He also explained the timing: Johnson’s salary could not be combined with another player’s in a trade until Tuesday, two months after his previous move. Source: Bobby Marks

FOX 8 reported that the Pelicans intend to complete a two-year, $16 million agreement with Mathurin. Until that signing is announced, it is best described as the next planned step. Source: FOX 8

Fans should be careful with the phrase “cap space.” Salary savings, luxury-tax room and apron flexibility measure different things. A reported reduction in payroll should not automatically be treated as an equal amount of unrestricted spending money.

Gibson is expected to be waived; Johnson gets an opportunity

The Athletic’s Will Guillory reported that New Orleans plans to waive Gibson while still owing him $100,000. Johnson is expected to remain for now, giving the team an opportunity to evaluate him in training camp. Source: Will Guillory

That changes how to read the deal. Gibson should not be penciled into the rotation, and describing his exit as costing absolutely nothing would overlook the reported obligation.

Johnson represents a developmental opportunity. He averaged 3.3 points in 48 appearances last season, while Hawkins averaged 5.1 points in 51 games and Peavy averaged 4.3 points in 61 appearances. Source: Reuters/Field Level Media

Those numbers do not establish Johnson as an immediate replacement for everything New Orleans is losing. Training camp will provide a better test of whether his decision-making, defense and offensive development can earn him a role.

The cost deserves scrutiny

Analysis: Moving Hawkins and Peavy while attaching draft value creates a clear burden for the front office: the resulting roster needs to justify the price.

Memphis gets two players to evaluate, an additional draft selection and a potential improvement to another selection. New Orleans gets flexibility and a chance to develop Johnson. Whether that becomes a successful exchange depends heavily on what the Pelicans do next.

Mathurin’s planned arrival is therefore central to the basketball evaluation. The useful question is whether his eventual role improves the team’s scoring options and lineup combinations enough to offset the outgoing depth and assets.

Salary savings alone do not win games. Fans should judge the full sequence by rotation quality, player development and performance.

What to watch next

The next checkpoints are an official trade announcement, confirmation of Gibson’s waiver, completion of the Mathurin signing and Johnson’s training-camp role. Until those steps occur, reported intentions should remain labeled as such.

Pelicans fans: Is clearing the way for Mathurin worth giving up Hawkins, Peavy and draft value?

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