It was announced Thursday night that the Los Angeles Lakers have acquired perhaps the best point guard in basketball, Chris Paul in a three-team deal that includes the Houston Rockets and Paul's former team, the New Orleans Hornets.
The Lakers would send forward Lamar Odom to New Orleans and forward Pau Gasol to Houston. In turn, Houston would send point guard Goran Dragic, guard Kevin Martin, forward Luis Scola and a protected future first-round pick (formerly New York's) to New Orleans.In six seasons with the Hornets, Paul has averaged 18.7 points and 9.9 assists per contest.
Paul's contract with New Orleans expired after this season and with his return doubtful, the Hornets had been fielding offers for the last few weeks, in hopes of getting something in return in a trade instead of him walking away, while they got nothing.
Paul is currently one of the best point guards in the NBA and is expected to sign an extension with the Lakers once the trade is finalized.
Last season, Paul averaged 15.8 points and 9.8 assists per game.
Now, the combination of Paul and Kobe Bryant will ultimately become one of the most formidable duos in the entire league. And not to mention, it increasingly helps the Lakers' chances in landing Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard, who has also been shopped around as of late.
The Rockets, who receive former Grizzlie and Laker, Pau Gasol, recently lost former No. 1 overall pick Yao Ming to retirement, which left a humongous hole in the frontcourt.So, in order for them to fill that gap, the Rockets dealt three players to the Hornets, in exchange for Gasol from the Lakers.
It turned out to be better for Gasol to end up in Houston because the Rockets actually wanted him and plan to keep Gasol, while New Orleans would have traded him again or let him walk once his contract was up.
From the Rockets' standpoint, it seems as though they are entering a re-building phase, as they give up two of their best players in Martin and Scola to acquire Gasol.
The Hornets had constantly stated that they wanted younger players if they were to deal Paul. The reason for that is that general manager Dell Demps wanted young talent that they could build around. It seems like a good deal for the Hornets, as they give up one great player for three solid players and a mid-first round selection that they acquired from Houston.
Now, all of a sudden, the Hornets have a pretty solid team that could help them climb the ladder in the Western Conference. With the trade of Paul, the Hornets' roster will now look like this: Odom, Scola, Martin, Dragic, Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza, Jarrett Jack and Quincy Pondexter.
If the Hornets are able to mesh, they could definitely make a run with the shortened schedule and could surprise some folks this upcoming season.With the trade, the Hornets now have nine players under contract for the season and they will likely add some quality role players, just like the Heat did last season when they acquired LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
The trade seems to be a good fit for each team that was part of the deal.
Also, there are some losers in the trade. And those include the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors, all of whom were trying to land Paul. It could also spell doom for the other Western Conference teams, as they will now have to deal with a Paul-Bryant combo.
Clearly, the Lakers just got a lot better and that is scary to think about.
Here's a quick breakdown of the trade:
- Houston Rockets receive: PF Pau Gasol
- Los Angeles Lakers receive: PG Chris Paul
- New Orleans Hornets receive: PG Goran Dragic, SG Kevin Martin, PF/C Luis Scola, F Lamar Odom, and a future protected first-round pick (From Houston via New York)
