Chris Paul: Los Angeles Lakers Reportedly Pull out of CP3 Talks

So much for Chris Paul going to the Los Angeles Lakers.

After owners blocked a trade that would have sent Paul from the New Orleans Hornets to the Lakers, Marc Stein of ESPN tweeted on Saturday that the Lakers had pulled out of a three-team trade for Paul.

This certainly can't make Paul happy if it's true, or the National Basketball Player's Association. When the owners, led by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, nixed the original Paul trade, players threatened to rescind their signatures of the new collective bargaining agreement.

Now a superstar who has played on the same team for six seasons must sit idle for now, after almost packing his bags for L.A.

The Paul trade has been the first major dilemma owners and players have fought over since the new CBA, and it's beginning to get ugly.

The owners' stance is that the original trade was unfair, giving the big-market Lakers a superstar for essentially nothing while saving them money in the process.

There's also an argument to be made that the small-market Hornets were able to hold onto one of the league's best players for six seasons, yet ultimately weren't able to build a team around him to win a title.

Paul averaged 15.8 points, 9.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 steals last season while shooting 46 percent from the floor. He also shot 38 percent from three-point range.

He's a four-time All-Star and has been on three NBA All-Defensive teams.