NBA Trade Rumors: Chris Paul Could End Up on the Lakers This Month

The thought of Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant playing together on the Los Angeles Lakers would be a dream come true for any Lakers fan. It's a pipe dream though, right?

Not necessarily.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports recently reported:

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The Lakers and Hornets talked several days ago, league sources told Yahoo! Sports, but it was one of those circuitous conversations that left the sides unclear what it would take to get a deal done, and the talk ended with no formal offers. The Lakers and Hornets expect to speak again this week, sources said. The prospect of Pau Gasol(notes) as the primary player going to the Hornets won’t be acceptable, sources said. The Lakers will ultimately be willing to let New Orleans pick its player in the deal – Bynum or Gasol – but New Orleans is determined to get quality, and quantity, in a deal.

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One thing is clear, and that's the fact that Paul wants out of New Orleans. He's made it clear to the organization, and the Hornets have pretty much accepted their fate, and actually seem willing to work with their franchise star on getting him a good deal.

If you think about it, it's a smart move for the Hornets, as they are trying to avoid a LeBron James situation where Paul leaves in free agency and they are left with nothing.

The Lakers seem to be willing to talk a trade, and the Hornets are willing to make it happen.

For the sake of the NBA, I hope these two sides can reach a deal and make some basketball dreams come true.

Pairing Paul and Bryant together on the current Lakers team, minus some key trade pieces, would still make them one of the most exciting teams in the NBA, if not the most talented.

Paul has averaged 18.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 9.9 assists per game during his six-year career with the Hornets, and I can only imagine that Bryant's 25.3 points per game from last season would improve drastically with a play-maker the caliber of Paul on his squad.

It would be a match made in basketball heaven, and essentially both the Lakers and Hornets would leave the deal getting something they needed out of it.

The Hornets organization would avoid losing Paul for nothing in free agency and would get some key pieces back to rebuild with, and the Lakers would get a superstar to pair up with Bryant.

It's possible, and the rumors are there. Now we just have to wait and see if CP3 will be a Laker when the NBA officially tips off once again.