NBA Rumors: Brandon Ingram Eyed by Warriors amid Kevin Durant, Butler Trade Buzz

The Golden State Warriors have reportedly looked into the possibility of acquiring forward Brandon Ingram from the New Orleans Pelicans prior to Thursday's NBA trade deadline.

According to NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, the Warriors have also explored potential trades for Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant and Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler, but Ingram is an option if they can't get a bigger deal done.

Ingram, who is in the midst of the final year of his contract, has not played since December due to an ankle injury.

It remains unclear when Ingram will be able to return to game action, as the Pelicans have yet to provide a concrete update on his sprained ankle.

Per SI.com's Terry Kimble, Ingram has done some on-court work before home games recently, which is a sign that he is making some progress.

The 27-year-old Ingram has appeared in only 18 games this season, but he put up strong numbers in those games, averaging 22.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 2.4 three-pointers made per contest while shooting 46.5 percent from the field and 37.4 percent from beyond the arc.

Ingram, who was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft out of Duke, spent his first three NBA seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers before getting dealt to New Orleans as part of the Anthony Davis trade.

He was named an All-Star for the first and only time during his first season with the Pels, and Ingram was also chosen as the NBA Most Improved Player that season.

Ingram has averaged at least 20 points per game in each of his six seasons with the Pelicans, and averages 23.0 points per game overall in a Pels uniform.

The Warriors boast arguably the greatest shooter in NBA history in two-time MVP Stephen Curry, but the future Hall of Famer hasn't gotten a ton of help from his supporting cast this season.

Outside of Curry (22.1 points per game), the Dubs' top scorers are Andrew Wiggins (17.6) and and Jonathan Kuminga (16.8). Every other Warriors player averages 11.5 points per game or fewer.

Offseason and in-season acquisitions such as Buddy Hield, Dennis Schröder and Kyle Anderson haven't made the type of impact the Golden State front office likely hoped for, which is why the Warriors have reportedly been active in terms of trying to find a trade.

Durant, who previously won a pair of championships with the Warriors, would be the most impactful addition possible, but he may be more of a pipe dream than a realistic target.

Butler would also be a major addition considering he twice led the Heat to the NBA Finals and is a six-time All-Star.

However, Ingram would arguably be an even better fit for Golden State than Butler due to his length and ability to spread the floor in head coach Steve Kerr's uptempo offense.

At 25-24, the Warriors are in a three-way tie with the Sacramento Kings and Suns for ninth in the Western Conference, meaning they are far from guaranteed to make the playoffs.

However, if the Dubs land Ingram and he returns healthy in the near future, he could be just what Curry needed in terms of a capable scorer to take some of the pressure off him.