The Pelicans were smart to wait, the Lakers will still want him in summer and other teams can make their play for him.
The problem is, on the internet, in the media and on BGOL, the mentality is that once the big markets come calling for your star player, you just submit and give up your star and take what ever the big market gives back because stars just need to be in big markets, ESPN is already planting the seeds with Giannis.
The Pelicans are smart to wait, the only reason I would have taken the trade was to prevent this shit show that people in New Orleans are largely getting turned off from.