Chris Paul Trade Rumors: Heat Not Being Aggressive in Pursuit of Star PG

The Miami Heat may not be interested in a consolation prize after missing out on Russell Westbrook.

The Miami Herald's Barry Jackson reported Friday that the Heat are "doing due diligence on Chris Paul, but there is no aggressive pursuit on the Heat's part, unlike efforts to get Westbrook before his trade yesterday."

Miami was heavily linked to the 2016-17 league MVP. ESPN's Tim Bontemps relayed Wednesday that some around the NBA felt it was "an inevitability" that Westbrook would land with the Heat.

Instead, the Oklahoma City Thunder reportedly traded Westbrook to the Houston Rockets on Thursday. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Rockets sent Paul to Oklahoma City along with two first-round picks (2024, 2026) and two pick swaps (2021, 2025).

Wojnarowski then reported the Rockets initially hoped to loop in a third team that was preferable to Paul, but Miami "remains [a] possibility."

Appearing on ESPN's Get Up! on Friday, Wojnarowski said the Thunder "started the process" of moving Paul as soon as the trade was agreed upon Thursday.

Wojnarowski continued:

"The conversation with Miami was ongoing prior to the deal that got Chris Paul to Oklahoma City. He's 34 years old. He wants to be on a team that has playoff aspirations, and certainly, for Oklahoma City, their ability to move him on will be based on a team's willingness to take on three years, $120 million-plus on a player who certainly showed his age last season. ...

"But Miami with Jimmy Butler, who they acquired in a sign-and-trade in the offseason, they don't have cap space. They are limited in draft assets moving forward. Their ability to get better is going to be through trade and a willingness to take on some salaries and some players in their 30s that others may not be willing to. The market for Chris Paul is going to be small, but Miami's at the top of that list. [The Thunder would] like to try and get that deal done as soon as they can."

Paul's two seasons in Houston were tinged with injury troubles. The nine-time All-Star appeared in just 58 regular-season games in 2018-19 in part because of a hamstring injury he suffered in December. His hamstring also caused him trouble during the Rockets' Western Conference Finals loss to the Golden State Warriors in 2017-18.

When on the court, he's still productive. Last season, Paul averaged 15.6 points, 8.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.0 steals. However, as Wojnarowski pointed out, the most notable number attached to Paul is his salary.