When Chris Paul toasted to himself, Carmelo Anthony, and Amare Stoudemire forming their own “Big Three” in New York in the future, the writing was on the wall. If you’re the New Orleans Hornets’ brass and your franchise player is rumored to be speaking openly about his future plans in another city — despite the fact that he’s two years away from free agency — you must know you’re facing a major problem. Having listened to the rumors, it’s no surprise to catch word that sources are saying Chris Paul wants out of New Orleans before the start of the season.
It’s obvious the coming together of D-Wade, Chris Bosh, and King James in Miami has gotten CP3 extremely giddy. He sees the Hornets as a dead-end team and wants to be a part of something like what they’ve assembled in South Beach. Have you ever played street ball with your friends and been picked by the team who clearly has the best players and thought to yourself, “this is gonna be awesome, these teams are shmuck?” That’s the way Paul is thinking now that the era of superstars joining forces has hit its stride.
The three teams Cp3 is reportedly interested in being dealt to are the Knicks, Magic, and Lakers. Kobe and Paul is an intriguing thought, but L.A. is probably set for the time being at point guard after re-signing Derek Fisher and adding Steve Blake. Kobe pushed hard for Fisher to return and it’d be a slap in the face to one of the classiest Lakers of all time if CP3 came in and began running the show. I suppose the Magic could dump Jameer Nelson and move forward with a duo of Dwight Howard and Chris Paul, but it seems unlikely. The most likely scenario: the New York Knicks make a push toward resurrecting their franchise.
New York took the first step when they signed Amare Stoudemire. He may wear sailor outfits, but he’s a franchise player. However, that’s not enough. They let their best player in David Lee walk for a better one at that position. They need to do more to improve, and acquiring CP3 could instantly make them a playoff team. If we really are entering an era where three superstars make up a roster, two of the three would already be in place in time for the Knicks to get Carmelo Anthony next off-season.
New York needs to give up whatever it will take to bring in Chris Paul now. If we know anything from our experience with professional sports it’s that when a player truly wants out, they’ll be traded. It’s better to take what you can get for a superstar than force a disgruntled employee to remain with your organization (ahem, Manny Ramirez). Eventually the Hornets will be forced to give CP3 what he wants, and it’d be in the Knicks’ best interest to be the ones on the other end of the phone when that time inevitably comes.
Source:
New Hornets brass already facing crisis with Paul [CBSSports]
