ESPN NBA Insider Chris Haynes appeared on Sportscenter Saturday night and said there is a “serious chance” the Houston Rockets could land Chris Paul in free agency.
Here's the full commentary from @ChrisBHaynes. Says #Rockets are pursuing CP3 "aggressively," thinks there's a "serious chance" it happens. pic.twitter.com/1UAfaw56hs
— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) June 24, 2017
Haynes is one of the most plugged-in NBA reporters out there, so when he says there’s a serious chance of something happening, that means it’s probably a real possibility. We had previously heard the Rockets were trying to clear cap space to pursue some of the biggest-name free agents out there, and Haynes reiterated that.
“One of the teams that’s pursuing him aggressively will be the Houston Rockets,” Haynes said. “They are trying to clear enough cap space to be able to bring in Chris Paul to play alongside James Harden. Patrick Beverley is on the trading block and Lou Williams is on the trading block, so that’s a team that I’m hearing has a serious chance of luring Chris Paul away from the Los Angeles Clippers.”
Paul decided to opt out of his contract with the Clippers and become an unrestricted free agent, as Los Angeles learned Friday. The team still hopes to re-sign both Paul and Blake Griffin, who also opted out, to maximum-contract deals. At this point, L.A. may not have any other options.
There is a lot of money on the table for Paul as a free agent. He may very well end up back with the Clippers on a restructured deal, but previous reports have indicated he and the Spurs have mutual interest, and Paul may be set on joining a contender at this point in his career.
