Biggest Loser in Chris Paul Trade? LeBron James

If Chris Paul gets traded, I think the biggest loser in all of it is LeBron James.

Some people defend his decision, and some revile it.  However, no matter where you stand, we can all agree that part of his choice was predicated on the idea that he couldn't get help in Cleveland.

I'd go so far as to say that we might all agree that LeBron would've stayed in Cleveland had Bosh accepted the sign-and-trade offer agreed to by both the Cavs and Raptors.

Given that, this might be a time to meditate on the possible costs of taking the easy way out (disregard, for a moment, whether you agree that going to Miami was the easy way out).

Widely considered to be LBJ's best friend, or at least one of his best friends, Chris Paul is now pushing for a trade.

"The Decision" is barely a month old, and LBJ's been questioned publicly by most of the living Hall of Fame.  He has turned into one of the villains of the sports world.

After all that, a top caliber player LBJ has pull with is available.

Not just that...Chris Paul loves Cleveland's head coach Byron Scott.

Scott, a two-time coach of an NBA Finalist, got along with CP3 when he coached him and all reports indicate Paul still holds him in high esteem.  Now, you have his great friend LBJ and a winning coach he already enjoyed playing for. 

Wouldn't Cleveland automatically be numero uno on Paul's list if LeBron was there?

I think there's no question it would be. There would be questions regarding Cleveland's ability to entice New Orleans to trade CP3, but there would be no question Paul would be on board for the trade.

Imagine that.

LeBron gets to be the hero by staying home to keep his word and win as "The Man."  Then, after getting all that credit, he still gets some of the best help possible when his friend Chris Paul joins him to play under Byron Scott.

Many would've called it karma.

We'd say a nice guy was actually going to get to finish first.

A Chris Paul/LeBron James connection would be as dangerous as any duo in the league.

But, just like that...poof...it's gone.

LeBron couldn't have known what Paul was going to do, but that doesn't make it sting any less.

It always hurts when you knew you wanted to do something, but you felt it wasn't in your best interests.  So, you took a seemingly easier path only to find out later that if you had only been a little more patient on your righteous path, that things were going to work out for the better.

We still don't know if New Orleans will trade Chris Paul, or which team they would trade him to. The No. 1 team on Paul's list, according to reports, is New York.

This is another slap to King James after he shunned his chance to be the ruler of the No. 1 media market and make New York his own.

Now, could Chris Paul show him all that he missed out on for the next eight years?

Possibly.

Or, what if Paul lands at his second favored spot, Orlando?

Chris Paul and Dwight Howard right next door to LeBron's talent destination in South Beach.  Wow.

What if LeBron sold out, blew up his brand, and left his home just to lose to Chris Paul and Dwight Howard?

Ouch.

No big deal though, LeBron only has five years to ponder what might have been if he stayed true to his roots and what he really wanted.