NBA Rumors: Chris Paul Sweepstakes Comes with No Guarantee of Contract Extension

It doesn't make sense for Chris Paul to sign a contract extension this year. The star point guard benefits more from becoming a free agent this summer and signing a new contract per new CBA rules this summer.

He knows this. Teams know it. And as of right now it is the only thing holding up nearly every team in the league from putting a deal on the table for him.

What everyone also knows is that the Hornets are intent on trading him. Paul has made it known that his preferred destination is New York with Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire, and it is precisely because of Carmelo that the Hornets want to make the deal now.

The All-Star forward was a complete distraction for both the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks last season before finally forcing his way East near the trade deadline.

The Hornets plan on capitalizing on CP3's value as quickly as possible and hope to begin rebuilding immediately. In order to do that they need to strike a deal worthy of Chris Paul.

The problem is that Paul won't sign a contract with any of these teams other than the Knicks. The Knicks, however, don't have the assets necessary to get it done.

Thus, Paul has to change his mind, or a team has to overpay for his services with absolutely no guarantee that he'll stick around for more than one season.

ESPN's John Hollinger and Marc Stein talked about the situation openly on Twitter:

The quandary is that the Clippers and Warriors would have to part with young stars Eric Gordon or Stephen Curry respectively without any guarantee of Paul staying put. CP3 would potentially be a one-year rental for two teams that cannot afford such a situation.

Teams such as Houston, Dallas and Boston, however, aren't afraid of the one-year rental concept.

What we know about Chris Paul is that he is high demand, but his contract is a problem for the Hornets. New Orleans is trying to find just compensation for its inevitable loss, and that is to be expected.

This situation isn't going away, but the Hornets hope that it ends quickly. Transactions will begin on Friday, Dec. 9, and Paul's name will continue to be on the lips of nearly every team. Don't expect any positive talk of a contract extension to accompany it.