For the second time in less than a week, Chris Paul was almost traded to the city of angels.
The first time, David Stern nixed a trade that would have sent the Hornets PG to the Los Angeles Lakers for Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom. More recently, the Los Angeles Clippers backed out of a deal that would have landed CP3 without having to part with rising star Blake Griffin.
Now, it is uncertain whether New Orleans will be able to move Chris Paul, at all.
According to Chris Broussard, Paul would only agree to play through at least 2013 with a select few teams, which in turn makes it difficult for the Hornets to negotiate with the rest of the league. This predicament compels many to believe that the CP3-to-Clips deal is currently at an impasse, rather than dead.
The following is a list of the latest rumors and reports on the Chris Paul saga:
* Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports: “Despite expressed interest from the NBA in reviving talks, the Los Angeles Clippers are still reticent about completing a trade for Chris Paul that would cost them too many of their preferred assets, league sources told Yahoo! Sports. All Chris Paul can do is sit and wait as the league office appears to be running the show in trade talks. One source involved in the talks characterized the negotiations late Monday as ‘dead for now.’ The Clippers backed out of a possible deal with the New Orleans Hornets earlier Monday because they considered the demands of NBA officials – who are presiding over the Hornets’ trade talks – too steep.”
* Ken Berger of CBS Sports: “The Chris Paul talks that would never die were revived Monday night, with a twist that was enraging some rival general managers. The Clippers’ winning waiver claim on Chauncey Billups allowed them to include point guard Eric Bledsoe in the deal, which could push it over the finish line, league sources told CBSSports.com.
By claiming Billups for about $2 million, the Clippers were able to solve the dilemma of not having another point guard on the roster—Mo Williams likely slides into the Jason Terry sixth man role, if he isn’t included in the trade or waived with amnesty. Thus, L.A. could responsibly include Bledsoe in a blockbuster package for Paul. Given that the league already has vetoed a previous three-team trade that would’ve sent Paul to the Lakers, executives brokering the deal for the owner-less Hornets ‘have nowhere else to go,’ said a person familiar with the negotiations.
‘They have no choice’ but to make sure Paul is traded to the Clippers, the person said.”
* Marc Stein of ESPN: “There is renewed momentum to push through a trade that would send Chris Paul from the league-owned New Orleans Hornets to the Los Angeles Clippers, according to sources close to the process.
After a seemingly imminent trade routing Paul to the Clippers collapsed earlier Monday, sources told ESPN.com that the league officials negotiating on the Hornets’ behalf had aggressively re-engaged the Clippers in talks in hopes of completing a deal as soon as Tuesday.”