As he approaches unrestricted free agency this summer, where might Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul end up? Here are five potential landing spots.
After 12 seasons in the NBA, Chris Paul has yet to appear in the conference finals. However, you’d be crazy to think that matters in the slightest bit as he approaches unrestricted free agency this summer.
Though he’s already 32 years old and has an unfortunate and unlucky history of coming up short in the postseason, CP3 is the best available point guard in free agency this summer. Using an early termination in his contract, the nine-time All-Star and eight-time All-NBA selection will be able to sign with any team he chooses.
This season with the Los Angeles Clippers, Paul averaged 18.1 points, 9.2 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game, all while shooting an efficient 47.6 percent from the floor and a career-high 41.1 percent from three-point range (on a career-high 5.0 attempts per game, no less).
Paul is getting older and remains a bit injury-prone, but his status as one of the league’s elite floor generals has never been in question.
The real question is, where will he sign in free agency? The Clippers are a perennial 50-win team and can offer him the most money, but is there a chance another suitor could swoop in and snag a new franchise point guard? Here’s a look five potential landing spots for Chris Paul this summer.
5. Los Angeles Lakers
I’m sure this inclusion will induce as many eye rolls as seeing “#FutureLaker” plastered all over Twitter, but hear me out. While it would make more sense to re-sign with the other NBA franchise in L.A., the more prestigious one isn’t entirely impossible in terms of Chris Paul landing spots.
Though the Los Angeles Lakers are much further away from contention than the Clippers right now, they have plenty of cap space. Their focus should be on the draft and developing their young nucleus, but for a franchise with 16 championship banners, this front office will never turn its back on making a splash that involves legitimate star power.
Neither Jordan Clarkson nor D’Angelo Russell looks like a franchise point guard to this point, and CP3’s domineering brand of tutelage might help them in the long run. Don’t forget, Paul was on his way to the Lakers in 2011 before David Stern’s infamous “basketball reasons” nixed the deal, and the possibility of luring Paul George in free agency in 2018 looms large as well.
However, a max contract for Paul would limit the Lakers’ cap space to bring PG-13 back home next summer, and even if this kind of deal keeps CP3 in L.A., what would be the point of jumping franchises when the Clippers are so much better? The luster of the Lakers has lost some of its sheen, so if Paul wants to stay in L.A., he’d be better off taking the pay raise to stay with Lob City.
4. New York Knicks
Another unlikely destination, the only way the New York Knicks would even remotely be considered by Chris Paul is if Phil Jackson is unable to trade Carmelo Anthony. With the franchise looking to rebuild around Kristaps Porzingis, the odds here aren’t great.
However, if Jackson is unable to find a team that A) is interested in Melo and B) is an enticing enough destination to get him to waive his no-trade clause, perhaps the embattled Knicks All-Star would try to improve his situation by recruiting another All-Star and fellow banana boat member, Chris Paul.
Would that be smart for a Knicks franchise that’s still several pieces and a couple of years away from being truly relevant among the Eastern contenders? Probably not, being that CP3 is 32 years old and would be looking for max money if he were to turn down $200 million from the Clippers while not joining a legitimate title contender.
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However, a Big Three of Melo, CP3 and Porzingis would be enough to get the Knicks back to to the playoffs and add more star power to a major market franchise that’s addicted to big names. Melo’s friendship with Paul could be a factor if he somehow worked his way off the trade block, and CP3 would have an easier time getting that conference finals monkey off his back in the East.
New York’s best option would be to trade Melo, stay the course by rebuilding around the Zinger and remain patient, but as we’ve seen far too many times with this franchise, that rarely happens. Fortunately for both parties, there are better options to consider here.
3. New Orleans Pelicans
Maybe this veers closer to nostalgia than realism, but what can we say? Chris Paul returning to NOLA and forming a Big Three with Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins would be a pretty great story.
The last time CP3 played in the Big Easy the team was called the Hornets, but the New Orleans Pelicans have more to offer their former All-Star point guard than familiar surroundings thanks to two of the game’s best big men, both of whom are under the age of 26.
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The Pellies have a dynamic duo who can spread the floor in the frontcourt; now they just need another star player to facilitate, defend the point guard position and lend a little veteran experience and guidance.
Jrue Holiday had a great season, but he’s an unrestricted free agent and he’s no Chris Paul. If there’s any indication CP3 is even considering a return to New Orleans, the Pelicans would be foolish to prioritize overpaying to keep Holiday over wooing Paul, even with Holiday being six years younger. The difference in facilitation, defense and even three-point shooting would be staggering.
However, as much as this may be a fan favorite destination, there’s been zero indication CP3 is even considering a New Orleans homecoming. His domineering leadership would most likely clash with Cousins’ prickly personality and at age 32, there’s no guarantee a player with such an extensive injury history would be able to finally get over the conference finals hump.
A CP3-AD-Boogie Big Three sounds tantalizing on paper, but would it really make the Pelicans a legitimate threat to the Warriors, Spurs or even the Rockets in the West?
2. Los Angeles Clippers
Say what you want about the Los Angeles Clippers, but the truth is they have little reason to “blow it up.” The decision isn’t really in their hands anyway with CP3 and Blake Griffin possessing early termination options on their contracts and J.J. Redick likely to leave as an unrestricted free agent.
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Lob City will likely be losing its starting 2-guard this summer, but that doesn’t mean it won’t aggressively pursue contract extensions for both Paul and Griffin. On the financial side, there’s plenty of incentive for CP3 to re-sign — try $200 million worth.
After negotiating the new collective bargaining agreement that gives teams additional financial advantages when re-signing their own free agents, it’d be odd to see Chris Paul not capitalize on that. Even if Lob City does feel cursed, a three-man core with him, Griffin and DeAndre Jordan is still good for at least 50 wins year in and year out.
Will that ever be enough to get the Clippers to the conference finals? It’s looking unlikely thanks to the Warriors and Spurs juggernauts, not to mention rising Western powers like the Rockets and even the Utah Jazz.
But Chris Paul enjoys living in L.A., the Clippers can offer him the biggest contract and aside from our No. 1 team, there’s no better combination of being able to seriously contend AND getting enough money to turn down a five-year, $205 million deal.
A four-year, $152 million max deal from an outside suitor just pales in comparison. This is the best era of Los Angeles Clippers basketball, and Chris Paul helped shape that. It’s possible he favors a change of scenery, but it just doesn’t feel probable at this point.
1. San Antonio Spurs
No one would blame Chris Paul for taking his $200 million pay day, remaining in Los Angeles and trying to end the curse of the Clippers franchise. But if he prioritizes winning over everything else, the San Antonio Spurs are his best option.
The Spurs would have to do a little bit of financial maneuvering to be able to offer Paul anything close to a max deal, most likely by letting Patty Mills walk in free agency and hoping — no, praying — that Pau Gasol opts out of the $16.2 million remaining on the last year of his contract.
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However, general manager R.C. Buford has created the same kind of salary cap wiggle room in the past, deftly moving to clear out enough space to sign LaMarcus Aldridge in 2015. He could very easily do so again, especially since it was encouraging how the Spurs’ bench bounced back so quickly despite shedding some important members of the second unit to land Aldridge.
Tony Parker‘s game was already on the decline before his season-ending quadriceps injury, and as he turns 35 years old this week, the Spurs need to be thinking about a long-term replacement — even for the greatest point guard in franchise history.
TP could thrive as a backup. Mills played extremely well this past season, but he might not be good enough to be a full-time starting point guard, especially after potentially playing himself out of the Spurs’ price range this summer. Rookie Dejounte Murray has shown signs of promise, but he’s not ready to be handed the reins to a 60-win team.
Chris Paul would be the perfect stopgap, bringing instant offensive firepower, defensive prowess, veteran poise and exquisite facilitation to a team that already excels in all of those areas. Him and Gregg Popovich would spell trouble for the rest of the league, especially with scorers like Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge to feed.
Going to San Antonio would require great financial sacrifice on Chris Paul’s part, but he wouldn’t have to live under the pressure of being “the guy” anymore and would probably enjoy Pop’s systematic resting of older players to keep them fresh for the postseason.
CP3 would finally get that conference finals appearance under his belt to cement his place as one of the NBA’s greatest point guards of all time (which shouldn’t be in doubt anyway), and as the Warriors’ reign has proven, only a team willing to partake in this arms race of superstar players can hope to compete.
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If Chris Paul somehow becomes the next starting point guard for the San Antonio Spurs, the rest of the league will be regretting all those “choke artist” hot takes very soon.