Photo via CNN.tv.
The Los Angeles Clippers have agreed to a deal in principle with the league-ownedNew Orleans Hornets to acquire guard Chris Paul, according to sources close to the process.
The Clippers, sources said, will send guard Eric Gordon, center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu and Minnesota’s unprotected 2012 first-round pick to the Hornets for Paul.
via Sources: Clippers, Hornets agree | ESPN.com
And that’s it. The saga only took one week to resolve itself, but it packed enough drama to rival the months-long Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes. In the end, the Hornets got a vastly superior haul for CP3 than they would have in the original Lakers trade: a semi-elite two-guard in Gordon, another young player with significant promise in Aminu, a sizeable expiring contract in Kaman, and Minnesota’s sure-to-be-high-in-the-lottery pick in next year’s stacked draft. It’s as good a starting point for a full rebuild as they could have hoped for, and it makes David Stern’s ridiculous “basketball reasons” explanation for vetoing the Lakers trade seem sort of defensible, even though it isn’t.
On the other side, well, the best teammate Chris Paul has had to date is David West. And now he gets Blake Griffin. And DeAndre Jordan. And his pick of either one of them to throw lobs to every time down the floor if he feels like it. And we get to watch it on League Pass every night if we’re so inclined. And now the Clippers can likely avoid the uncertainty of whether they’ll be able to hang onto Griffin in a year when he’s elegible for an extension. And, assuming they don’t get Dwight Howard, the Lakers may soon become the second-most relevant NBA team in the city of Los Angeles.
All in all, this is a huge win for both teams involved. The Clippers get the best point guard on the planet to team with the most ideal pick-and-roll partner he could ask for, and the Hornets spare themselves a year of drama and get a head start on rebuilding. But most of all, this trade marks a great day for basketball fans everywhere because WE GET TO WATCH CHRIS PAUL AND BLAKE GRIFFIN TOGETHER. EVERY NIGHT.
