Lakers, Chris Paul Are an Obvious Fit amid NBA Trade Rumors
The Phoenix Suns are having trouble trading away Chris Paul, and that could be great news for the Los Angeles Lakers.
While the Suns can—and probably will—take this down to the wire before Paul's $30.8 million salary for the 2023-24 NBA season fully guarantees on June 28, so far it's been slow going on the trade market. Phoenix likely needs to incentivize someone to take Paul off its hands, but that's a challenge when the franchise depleted its draft capital in the Kevin Durant trade.
The Suns' pick shortage "has certainly dampened the Suns' efforts" to move Paul, per Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer, and with the clock ticking toward Paul's guarantee date, Phoenix could conceivably wind up waiving him before that happens.
That could be the best-case scenario for L.A. If Paul gets waived, the Lakers would have "strong interest" in adding him, per The Athletic's Jovan Buha. Paul might be pleased if it plays out that way, too, as the Point God "would prefer to play in a contending environment," per Fischer.
It's too early to tell how this will play out, but it's not too early to say Paul and the Purple and Gold could be perfect for one another.
Paul Would Fill a Need
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The Lakers have long sought out ways to slot additional shot-creators around LeBron James. Paul, a Banana Boat buddy of James, remains one of basketball's best decision-makers.
While Paul's scoring has sagged in recent seasons, his decision-making and dime-dropping are still razor-sharp. This past season, he tallied 8.9 assists against just 1.9 turnovers. Good lead guards typically provide between two and three times as many assists as giveaways. Paul more than quadrupled his miscues with setup passes.
He could play a featured role in this offense. Obviously, the attack would still run through James and Anthony Davis first, but Paul would be one of the primary ball-handlers and pick-and-roll creators. When he wasn't on the ball, he could pull some defensive attention his way as a 36.9 percent career three-point shooter.
L.A. needs to do something at point guard this offseason. Both D'Angelo Russell and Dennis Schröder are unrestricted free agents and not at all guaranteed to return. Replacing them with Paul or even teaming one up with him—Buha reported the Lakers have discussed signing Paul and bringing back Russell—could put this critical position group in great shape.
L.A. Could Fill a Need for Paul, Too
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The fact Paul prefers to play for a contender should surprise no one.
He just celebrated his 38th birthday and remains without a championship ring. Even if his legacy as an all-time great point guard is already cemented, he could still get a legacy lift by taking home a title.
But how many other contenders have a hole at point guard? There aren't a lot. The Los Angeles Clippers might, but they could see Paul as too much of an injury risk given all of the availability issues they've already encountered with Kawhi Leonard and Chris Paul. The Milwaukee Bucks sort of make sense on paper, but they have bigger offseason puzzles to solve with Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton (player option) potentially heading into free agency.
There just aren't nearly as many sensible landing spots as you'd think for a player of Paul's caliber and stature. The list isn't long, and you could argue the Lakers should top it.
The Lakers Might Not Have to Pay Much
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Regardless how Paul's situation plays out from here, he's set to collect at least $15.8 million—the guaranteed portion of his pact, per Spotrac. Since he'll already have eight figures in hand, he could conceivably take a bottom-dollar deal for the chance to contend.
That would—obviously—be ideal for L.A.
Sign Paul for dirt cheap, and that could free up the Lakers to spend elsewhere. Maybe that leaves enough left over to keep Russell. Perhaps it solidifies the fact L.A. will match any offer sheet Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura ink in restricted free agency. It could even allow the franchise to look outside the organization for more help.
Paul might not be a $30.8 million player anymore, but he's not a minimum-money level player either. Because of his unique financial situation, though, he might be open to take a bargain-rate deal allowing his new team to expand the talent base around him.
