Moses Moody and Jestor both attended UArk in their college days
The Pelicans were despondent after their efforts to land R.J. Barrett failed. Though the season has gone excellently thus far, there was a sense within the organization that they needed to make one more move. And for that, they were willing to dangle their own 1st round pick next year, Portland's same, and/or A.J. Griffin, though the team didn't believe the right fit was out there after having scoured the league, leading to their shutting down trade negotiations.
But then they opened things back up. Surely there was a move waiting. The Utah Jazz were still offering Moses Moody, and there was a lot of negotiation back and forth. Until a deal was struck: Josh Jackson's expiring contract, the Pelicans' 2034 1st with Top 10 protection, and the never-used and no interest raw prospect David Boston, Jr., who showed signs of being a bust for Moody, Eric Paschall, Jalen Adams (cut immediately), and the Detroit Pistons 2033 2nd.
What does Moody bring to the table? Much like Anfernee Simons, an early declaration after one season of college ball, and in his fourth year at just 22 years old. He has 1-3 positional versatility - including genuine starting PG-level handles by the league average - a game that features more shot attempts than most scouts think, solid rebounding at the guard spots, capable defense, good discipline and IQ, and quite good intangibles. The question, like so many Pelicans before they arrived in New Orleans, is his shooting numbers.
"You look at his shooting numbers and you see a guy who has gradually been increasing his TS% and EFG% as he's been in the league, as his ratio of 3 point shots to total attempts has gone up," said an East scout. "He's at 53.2% and 50.2% right now, which puts him in line with A.J. Griffin, who is only taking 5.5 shots a game. Moody? 2.4 times as many despite only playing 1.8 times as many minutes."
The Pelicans project to play Moody 32 minutes a game -likely as a 6th man combo guard off the bench, exiling DDV and Alessandro Pajola. As the rival scout noted, "Right now, the bench is sorely lacking in good volume 3 point shooting. DDV is averaging 3.3, but is awful at 19.4% from range, and Mouhamed Gueye is averaging 2.7 treys, but he's been inconsistent. Moody is a much more efficient, higher usage guy who should make the second string much stronger."
Not to be understated - that versatility. Right now, whenever Tyrese Maxey has been hurt, the team has struggled without a volume 3 point shooter in the lineup (Aaron Wiggins is not a natural scorer and Wemby only part-times from 3 point range). And should Anfernee Simons ever get hurt, the Pelicans have had precisely zero cover for him until now. And he can play the 3 as well, though that's far less of concern, with Griffin and rumors that Jestor favorite Dikembe Dixson is due to sign soon.
"Really what this is all about," said one team official. "This is about people not believing in Simons and by extension not believing in us as a team. No one trusts our winning record. Everyone expects the bottom to drop out. We expected that to happen, too, to be honest. But here we are, 33 games into the season, almost halfway through, and we're securely in the play-in slots."
Things to point to for next season, when that pick is no longer their own, albeit Top 10 protected:
*Wemby's third season conditioning boost and another development TC
*Another development TC for Griffin, Gueye and Olivier Maxence-Prosper
*A max contract slot before Moody's re-signing (An estimated 28 million coming off the books before raises and the 1st round draft pick, and with 6 2nd rounders that won't be signed until after the major moves are made)
Other Moves?
Highly unlikely. The Pelicans are now committed to their Thunder and Lightning backcourt. Wemby is going nowhere. They don't want to disrupt their cap space, and are high on OMP's potential. No team has inquired about Simons anyway, even when he was available. At most, a deadline deal involving Gueye or Griffin could emerge, possibly attached to DDV's expiring. But again, New Orleans won't deal itself out of a max contract slot - especially when they have future deals for Maxey and Wemby to take care of, while also keeping an eye on long-term hard cap projections.
As one West scout observed, "This deal is really about Moody for that 1st round pick. And if you don't believe in this team two years from now, because that's really what would happen if the team is as bad as the deal doubters are saying and there's Top 10 protection on it, then yes, it's an awful trade. But if you believe in New Orleans' continued rise from wherever they end up this year, you're talking about a potential mid-late 1st. And we don't know what the new draft classes are going to look like. If it's those shitty classes like the early years, absolute win for the Pelicans. If it's been good classes like we've had recently, then yes, a potential win for the Jazz. Ultimately, I think this is a trade that is going to turn out beneficial for both organizations."
2020, 2023, 2027, 2035