NBA Trade Rumors: Eric Bledsoe Being Shopped by Pelicans Amid Lonzo Ball Buzz

The New Orleans Pelicans are off to a disappointing 5-10 start, which may mean they sell off some veteran pieces prior to the March 25 trade deadline.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst said on The Jump that the team may look to move more than just Lonzo Ball and JJ Redick.

"Yes, and not just those two guys," he said (h/t Oleh Kosel of SB Nation's The Bird Writes). "Eric Bledsoe has also been involved in trade talks, and in a lot of cases, it's the Pelicans making the calls. There's interest there to move out some of the veteran guards to make room for Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kira Lewis, their first-round draft pick, to get those guys some playing time. The Pelicans are going to be making some changes, I believe."

Despite the lackluster start to the 2020-21 campaign, the future is still bright in New Orleans with Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram as the cornerstones.

Giving Alexander-Walker, 22, and Lewis, 19, additional playing time at this stage of their career should help them prepare to be key contributors when the Pelicans are ready to contend in the coming seasons.

Alexander-Walker is averaging 11.0 points in 20.0 minutes per game, while Lewis is averaging 3.6 points in 8.6 minutes per game.

New Orleans acquired Bledsoe as part of the trade that sent Jrue Holiday to the Milwaukee Bucks, and he has been solid but unspectacular in his first 14 games with the team with averages of 12.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists behind 44.1 percent shooting from the field and 40.6 percent shooting from three-point range.

Any team that trades for him down the stretch will have a veteran playmaker who is accustomed to competing in the playoffs after spending the previous three seasons with the Bucks. He can play off stars and hit from the outside when given space and is a formidable perimeter defender.

The University of Kentucky product was a first-team All-Defensive selection in 2018-19 and second-team All-Defensive selection in 2019-20.

Bledsoe, 31, is someone who could help a team in win-now mode compete in the playoffs, and a trade would bolster the Pelicans' rebuilding efforts with an eye on the future.