Brandon Ingram has been all over the news over the past few months, involved in numerous trade rumors. Nick Young expressed being frustrated with this treatment that his former Lakers teammate has been receiving and used social media to call out the New Orleans Pelicans.
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On his 27th birthday, the popular X account for basketball – @Ballislife – released a compilation of all of Ingram’s highlight plays from his time in the NBA. Reacting to this montage was Young. Unlike several fans, the former NBA player didn’t wish the forward a happy birthday. Instead, Swaggy P went on a passionate rant.
Lauding BI’s offensive prowess, Young condemned the Pelicans organization for trying to part ways with their star player.
“The NBA is crazy they wanna trade Bi and pay and keep all they defenders ….stop gatekeeping buckets.”
The NBA is crazy they wanna trade Bi and pay and keep all they defenders ….stop gatekeeping buckets https://t.co/D1k36wZTzt
— Nick Young (@NickSwagyPYoung) September 2, 2024
The Pels aren’t to be blamed for wanting to acquire another superstar in exchange for Ingram. It has been five years since he’s joined the Louisiana-based franchise and the team has advanced to the postseason merely twice. During both these playoffs (2022 & 2024), NOLA suffered embarrassing opening-round losses.
While David Griffin was unable to find the most desirable trade, he did accept to provide the 6ft 8” star with a four-year, $180 million contract. However, hellbent on receiving the max contract worth $208 million, Ingram turned the offer down
Ingram made it pretty clear that he wasn’t happy with the situation. Hence, he even posted a cryptic Instagram Story taking a dig at the Pelicans.
“You cannot stay in environments where people don’t know the true value of you. If you stay in environments where people don’t recognize the value of you, you will shrink your gift to the size of what they can stand.”
Ah… the NBA is real quiet, literally nothing happening… All the trades seem to be done…
Oh hey Brandon Ingram Just posted this! pic.twitter.com/kXfNpndGZV
— Nick Angstadt (@NickVanExit) August 30, 2024
Ingram hasn’t had a great five-year stint with the Pelicans. Receiving only one All-Star nod, he’s averaged 23.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.
However, he is still in the prime of his career and would very well be an asset to any team that he ends up representing. But to be rewarded with the type of contract that he’s demanding, Ingram will have to prove his worth by making it to the All-NBA team at the least.
