NBA Trade Rumors: The Latest on the Chris Paul Sweepstakes
The Chris Paul saga this offseason continues to give a number of people headaches, and none of that will go away until he finds a new home.
The All-Star point guard is likely to land in Los Angeles, but it remains to be seen whether he'll be playing with the Lakers or the Clippers. Then again, the NBA-led New Orleans Hornets could decide to keep him, which in turn would upset several fans.
It appeared as though the Lakers were out of the running for Paul when the NBA killed the first trade offer that started all this mess.
However, ESPN's Marc Stein and Chris Broussard are reporting that the Lakers still have a shot even though the Clippers are still fighting hard.
Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times reports that the Clippers aren't willing to give up Eric Gordon, and you can't blame them because they're already offering the Hornets so much.
The current deal the Clippers are willing to do is sending the Hornets center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu, point guard Eric Bledsoe and the unprotected first-round draft pick acquired by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
That's a very solid offer, but the NBA insists on having Gordon in the package.
Both sides are trying to gain leverage on the other, but nothing is working, which actually helps the Lakers.
While the Clippers wait for the NBA to wise up and lower its demands, the Lakers can put together another offer.
However, that won't be an easy task considering they recently traded Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks.
This has frustrated a lot of people because really this mess should have never happened. Paul should be in training camp with the Lakers, but instead the league took charge and ruined it all.
ESPN's Chris Palmer voiced his opinion on how this should all be settled, and it's something fans would definitely love to see.
Of course, if these two stars planned to go head-to-head, even just for fun, David Stern and the league might kill that too.
All these rejections from the NBA have irritated Paul, so much so that he might even take the NBA to court over it, according to the New York Daily News.
Paul would be looking to "charge the NBA with collusion and violating the league’s collective bargaining agreement," according to the paper's sources.
The NBA isn't going to want to go to court against Paul, so if he does do it, it could push the trade into completion.
The Clippers have the best shot right now, but the waiting game could prevent them from winning the coveted Chris Paul sweepstakes.
