NBA Trade Rumors: Which Team Has Most to Offer Hornets for Chris Paul?
Surprise, surprise! Chris Paul wants out of New Orleans.
According to Yahoo! Sports, he and his agent, the infamous Leon Rose, have already informed Hornets management of CP3's desire to leave the Bayou, preferably for the bright lights that surround the New York Knicks 24/7.
It's tough not to feel bad for Hornets general manager Dell Demps in this situation. The guy put together a pretty good team last year but will be hard-pressed to field a winner this time around. The team is league-owned, his biggest star wants out and his second-biggest star (David West) is likely to leave via free agency.
That is, unless Demps proves crafty enough to bring back a boatload of talent like Denver Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri did when he swapped Carmelo Anthony to the Big Apple. So which of Paul's potential suitors would give the Big Easy the best chance to play winning basketball right away, or at least not too far down the road?
New York Knicks
Definitely not the Knicks. As much as Paul would like to join forces with Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire, New York just doesn't have anywhere near enough young players and draft picks to help Demps kick-start the rebuilding process on the Bayou.
That's not to say that GM Glen Grunwald can't or won't find a way to make a deal work. He could potentially look to involve a third team replete with young talent but in search of a veteran piece or two (i.e. the Minnesota Timberwolves) to put together a package that would be more appealing to the Hornets' needs.
Don't think that bringing Paul to New York will be an easy process just because the Knicks managed to pry 'Melo from the Nuggets under similar circumstances last season. New York used up most of its tradeable assets in that deal.
Of all the teams rumored to be involved with CP3, the Knicks have the least to offer and, as such, will have to work the hardest to get a deal done.
The Celtics aren't exactly stacked with pieces that appeal to the Hornets, but they do have one trade chip that could be of interest to New Orleans—Rajon Rondo.
GM Danny Ainge has stated publicly that he doesn't "intend" to trade Rondo, though he didn't exactly deny the possibility that he might under the proper circumstances. Certainly, a deal for Chris Paul would be enough to spur his interest.
The only real hang up, though is that, according to ESPN's Chris Broussard, Paul wouldn't sign a long-term extension to stay in Boston beyond the 2011-12 season.
And who could blame him? Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are both aging and heading into the final year of their respective contracts, thereby designating the summer of 2012 as the starting point of a serious rebuilding effort in Beantown.
That being said, it's possible that the Celtics, recognizing that this season is likely the last hurrah for their Big Three, might be willing to go all out to win one more title and have CP3 serve as the younger lynch pin to that effort.
If nothing else, a ring may even help to convince Paul to stick around as the centerpiece of the franchise for years to come.
As far as the Hornets are concerned, Rondo would be a solid get given his age (25), toughness, championship experience and his being one of the few pure points in the NBA today. However, the Celts, like the Knicks, would need to drag a third team into the discussions to properly appease the Hornets' desires.
It may come as a surprise that the Clippers would be a real player for Chris Paul, though it really shouldn't, given the team's strong talent base. LA's "other" team sports an exciting young core—with Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon at the very center—that looked like a potential playoff team at midseason last year.
They have both the parts and the cap room to be an NBA dynasty if (and it's a big IF) GM Neil Olshey makes the right moves and has the support of notoriously stingy owner Donald Sterling.
CP3 would be the perfect superstar part to tie LA's roster together, as he'd represent both a clear upgrade at the point over Mo Williams and the perfect backcourt yin to Griffin's high-flying, frontcourt yang.
Just as importantly, the Clips have more than enough spare parts to make a deal worthwhile for the Hornets. A package of, say, Eric Gordon, a signed-and-traded DeAndre Jordan and a first-round pick–particularly the unprotected 2012 selection of Minnesota's that LA has—would probably be close to enough to convince Dell Demps to pull the trigger.
Playing for the Clippers may not be as glamorous as lifting the Knicks back to prominence, but if he can lead an up-and-coming team in the nation's second-biggest media market to unprecedented heights while sharing a building with one of the iconic franchises in all of American professional sports, he would be immortalized all the same.
Then again, Paul could always encourage Demps to go the "easy" route by swapping him to the Lakers. Everyone in LA knows full well that Derek Fisher isn't long for point guard duty with the Purple and Gold. More pressingly, the organization's window of opportunity to win titles while Kobe Bryant can still walk upright is closing rapidly.
Adding a player of Paul's caliber would help the Lakers in so many ways, as he would:
1) take a heap of pressure to produce on a nightly basis off Kobe's tired shoulders
2) fill LA's immediate and dire need at the point
3) give the Lakers a franchise-type player to build around for the post-Kobe years.
Clearly, the Lakers have every reason to bring CP3 to Staples Center, but do they have enough to offer in return?
Some combination of Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum and/or Lamar Odom, along with a draft pick or two, would be a fantastic starting point. The rumors surrounding the Hornets suggest that Demps isn't necessarily seeking another lead guard in return, that he's more concerned with getting value and would be willing to move Jarrett Jack into a starting role.
Jack isn't exactly an ideal solution at the position, but quality big men are much more difficult to come by. Assuming the Lakers don't spend too much of their existing frontcourt to get Dwight Howard, they may yet have more than enough to satisfy New Orleans' demands.
Golden State is shaping up to be a real dark horse in the race for Chris Paul's services. Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News tweeted on Thursday that the Hornets would be interested in a deal for Stephen Curry:
Of course, New Orleans would ask for more than just Curry in return, though the third-year guard out of Davidson is an excellent starting point.
Paul's willingness to sign an extension to stay in the Bay Area (or lack thereof) would likely be the biggest road block to him donning a Warriors uniform. Golden State doesn't exactly have a strong track record of winning, nor is there a roster currently in place that's anywhere near championship material.
What's more, the Warriors will be operating under the auspices of Mark Jackson in his first season as a coach of any kind at any level.
On the flip side, the franchise's new owners, Peter Guber and Joe Lacob, know how to put together a winning organization, having previously been significant stakeholders in the Boston Celtics. If GM Larry Riley can round up a "gift basket" with Curry, David Lee and/or Ekpe Udoh, he may yet have the opportunity to convince CP3 to be a part of something special in northern California, with plenty of existing talent and a rabid fan base to tap into.
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