The Lakers were very interested in Irving, but now they’ll have to turn their attention to other players who can help this struggling team win right away and get back into the playoff hunt.
Chris Paul may be going to the Los Angeles Lakers in a big deal
Kyrie Irving went to the Dallas Mavericks because the Los Angeles Lakers couldn’t get the Brooklyn Nets to trade him to them. Russell Westbrook is likely to be upset if he is openly offered to other teams. This could hurt the team’s chances of making the playoffs.
The Phoenix Suns tried to get Kyrie by giving up Chris Paul, which shows that the team wants to move on from its “Point God” after a bad start to the season. Two Western teams that want to trade point guards could just talk to each other and make a deal.
Exactly the right thought came from Eric Pincus at Bleacher Report. He proposed a four-team deal that would send Chris Paul to the Lakers.
“Though later in his career, Paul would be an upgrade. He has a strong relationship with James and gives the Lakers financial flexibility with two additional seasons (the last one at $30 million is non-guaranteed). … “Perhaps the Lakers can get Jae Crowder out of Phoenix in the deal and/or Mason Plumlee/Kelly Oubre Jr. from the Hornets,” Pincus wrote.
“The Lakers would need to send draft compensation (starting with a first) to the Hornets for taking on Westbrook’s contract. Charlotte may be interested in some of Los Angeles’ developing prospects like Austin Reaves, Max Christie and Wenyen Gabriel.”
There’s no doubt that Paul isn’t the same player the Lakers acquired in exchange for him 12 years ago, but he’d still bring a lot to the table in terms of veteran leadership. As a pass-first point guard with a much better shot than Westbrook, he would also be a much better fit next to LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
CP3 is currently shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from deep, while averaging 13.8 points, 8.6 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. Like LeBron, the ‘Point God’ has a two-year deal through which to play out his prime years in the league.
Although he didn’t give a specific outline of the trade, it seems like the Lakers would be sending out Russell Westbrook and a first-round pick in exchange for Paul and another player. They could sweeten the deal by including other players, such as Mason Plumlee or Kelly Oubre Jr. from the Charlotte Hornets.
The Lakers would be taking a huge risk by signing these veteran stars, but Paul could be the ideal point guard to take the team to the next level, take some of the load off of LeBron, and help them win a championship.
