Chris Paul is looking to explore options n test free agency

[tcorbin]

Chris Paul Publicly Denies Having Already Made Free Agency Decision
Feb 24, 2013 5:10 PM EST


Chris Paul is widely expected to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, so much so that a statement he made about remaining unsure hardly drew notice.

"No, I haven't decided what I am going to do next season, and no, I haven't told anyone what I'm going to do," Paul said.

Paul is widely believe to have final say on most personnel moves the Clippers make.

Via T.J. Simers/Sacramento Bee

I think this is worth its own thread.....

Alot of fake Hawks fans don't want to see Howard or Paul in Atlanta, but it doesn't really matter what those fake Hawks fans think, Ferry is going to go after Howard and Paul this summer, dispite what those fake Hawks fan think.

[ATL Boy]

Chris Paul Publicly Denies Having Already Made Free Agency Decision
Feb 24, 2013 5:10 PM EST


Chris Paul is widely expected to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, so much so that a statement he made about remaining unsure hardly drew notice.

"No, I haven't decided what I am going to do next season, and no, I haven't told anyone what I'm going to do," Paul said.

Paul is widely believe to have final say on most personnel moves the Clippers make.

Via T.J. Simers/Sacramento Bee

I think this is worth its own thread.....

Alot of fake Hawks fans don't want to see Howard or Paul in Atlanta, but it doesn't really matter what those fake Hawks fans think, Ferry is going to go after Howard and Paul this summer, dispite what those fake Hawks fan think.

Who on here said they don't want Howard and Paul on this team next season?

[GrimeyKidd]

No paul, and howard only if he stops sucking soon, id rather have al jefferson.

[ATL Boy]

No paul, and howard only if he stops sucking soon, id rather have al jefferson.

You'd reject Paul?!

[Jamaaliver]

No paul, and howard only if he stops sucking soon, id rather have al jefferson.

You'd reject Paul?!

I understand the sentiimate; JT0 is playing well of late. And we have such a free flowing offense where no single player normally dominates the ball. One thing CP3 has been known to do. I also and wary of him having a ton of influence on Ferry, ownership and the coaching staff.

I'm honestly not sure if I want him either. He's hella talented, but at this point it's less about general talent and more about how the pieces fit.

Teague and AL play so well together...it'd be a shame to break them up.

[Jamaaliver]

Who on here said they don't want Howard and Paul on this team next season?

I'm okay with bringing Howard in, but NOT at the expense of trading AL for him.

And I have no desire to watch Josh and Dwight play on the same team. As a fan of pure, fundamentally sound basketball those two would send me to an early grave.

Teague as our PG grows more on me everyday. So I'm unsure about Chris Paul.
Teague- 14 ppg 7 apg
Paul - 16 ppg 9 apg

Is it really wise to pay CP3 a max contract for 2 points and 2 assists more than we are already getting from Teague at a significantly lower salary?

I want what the Spurs have. And Teague is our version of a young(er) Tony Parker.

[Rip2137]

I agree there. I love Paul but I don't 10 extra million a year love Paul. And like I said before, Horford has IT when it comes to what you need put of a player to win a championship....Howard I am not so sure about. I wouldn't give up Horford for him but I would love to pair him with Horford. He is a guy you could use Horford at the 4 with.

[Jamaaliver]

I agree there. I love Paul but I don't 10 extra million a year love Paul. And like I said before, Horford has IT when it comes to what you need put of a player to win a championship....Howard I am not so sure about. I wouldn't give up Horford for him but I would love to pair him with Horford. He is a guy you could use Horford at the 4 with.

God, I love you RIP. I really do.

Agree that AL and Dwight would be a nice pairing (regardless of who plays Center).

I give you a fair amount of push-back, but fair is fair.
Regarding your insistence on Teague being our PG long-term:

[Geaux_Hawks]

If Teague continues to play the way he has lately, then of course we don't need Paul for at the cost of 10 extra million dollars, but if Teague is going to be inconsistent, then I say either trade him or use him as a 6th man.

I don't want Dwight to be honest with you. I would rather max out Smith, sign Jefferson or Pekovich and hope Teague plays like he is now.

[Jamaaliver]

I don't want Dwight to be honest with you. I would rather max out Smith, sign Jefferson or Pekovich and hope Teague plays like he is now.

Even if Dwight's career scoring, rebounding, blocks and FG% are all superior?

I really like Pekovic, but I've seen Dwight Howard carry a mediocre ORL team past Boston, CLE all the way to the Finals.

Pek and Jefferson are solid, but they won't singlehandedly carry us to the promised land.

Maxing out Josh is a bad idea altogether. 17 & 8 are not max-worthy numbers.

[Geaux_Hawks]

Dwight was blessed with a team that fit him to a tee. Hedo Turkoglu was very underrated, and he had a plethora of shooters surrounding him at all times. We also forget SVG orchestrated that team and did everything he could to maximize Dwight's talents, which just being bigger, stronger, and more athletic than most bigs.

I mean there is a guy on the GB arguing that Horford is the 2nd best center in the league right now. Really?! That's a different story, but Howard isn't going to carry us to the Finals. We could use him, but I would rather not go all in thinking Howard will take us to the promise land. CP3 is different, but if Teague can give us slightly lesser production, then I wouldn't break my neck trying to get CP3 either.

It's not about one guy singlehandedly taking us to the promise land. If that was the case, then the Lakers should at least be on the inside of the playoff picture rather than looking from outside and chasing after the 8th seed.

I wouldn't honestly max out Smith, but my point is that if Smith, Pekovich/Jefferson, Horford, Teague, and Korver fit as a unit, then why not roll with that group of players, rather put all my eggs in a basket hoping Howard doesn't get injured.

[tcorbin]

Chris Paul Publicly Denies Having Already Made Free Agency Decision
Feb 24, 2013 5:10 PM EST


Chris Paul is widely expected to re-sign with the Los Angeles Clippers, so much so that a statement he made about remaining unsure hardly drew notice.

"No, I haven't decided what I am going to do next season, and no, I haven't told anyone what I'm going to do," Paul said.

Paul is widely believe to have final say on most personnel moves the Clippers make.

Via T.J. Simers/Sacramento Bee

I think this is worth its own thread.....

Alot of fake Hawks fans don't want to see Howard or Paul in Atlanta, but it doesn't really matter what those fake Hawks fans think, Ferry is going to go after Howard and Paul this summer, dispite what those fake Hawks fan think.

Who on here said they don't want Howard and Paul on this team next season?

I rest my case..........

With that said, i'm glad that Ferry is on my side and will do the right thing and go after both Howard and Paul regardless of what the fake fans want.

[Geaux_Hawks]

tcorbin, you are quite the character. Just because somebody doesn't want a guy doesn't make them a fake fan. Like I have said before, If Howard is such a guarantee to put us in the Finals, then why are the Lakers not looking the team they were hyped to be? Yeah, Howard has been playing with some injuries, but when he does play, they don't always look the greatest. Heck, what if he comes here, and continues to be hurt?

[Jamaaliver]

How can one be a 'Fake Fan'?

Keep in mind, the Lakers went all the way to the NBA Finals 3 season ago without Andrew Bynum.

This year, with Dwight, they're not even in the playoffs.

It's not about just acquiring the most talented players, the pieces have to fit the system. LAL does not play a system that fits its personnel. And their pieces don't especially mesh well, either. (Kobe doesn't want or need a dominant PG)

[Jamaaliver]

Dwight was blessed with a team that fit him to a tee.

I don't know that he was 'blessed with that team. They were designed that way to take advantage of Dwight's skillset.

No big in the East could handle him one on one back then. If the opposition doubled, he needed three point shooters to make the other team pay.

Blessed intimates they were lucky; Otis Thorpe was very shrewd in how he put that team together. he was a good GM until he started catering to Dwight's every need and desire in hopes of keeping him happy.

[Geaux_Hawks]

I guess bless was a bit over the top, but they were some of the better perimeter shooters. Turkoglu was somewhat underrated. SVG was a better coach than what he was given credit for.

[Jamaaliver]

SVG was a better coach than what he was given credit for.

YES! I suspect Dwight thinks about this every day. He's had four (I think) NBA Head Coaches. All of have a losing record with him except SVG.

I guess bless was a bit over the top, but they were some of the better perimeter shooters. Turkoglu was somewhat underrated.

I'd say we have some pretty outstanding shooters as well. Think of what Jenkins and Korver could do with Dwight in the post and Horford working the mid-range.

D12 basically plays like Josh SHOULD play. Great shot blocker, good rebounder, domiantes the painted area on offense.

[ATL Boy]

I get what you guys are saying but there's no way I turn away Howard IN FREE AGENCY (I never said I'd give Horford for him, I'd really love for Horford and Dwight to be on the same team.) He's a true C and a 3 time defensive player of the year, even with the injuries he's still dominating on the defensive side of the ball and he's leading the league in rebounds. Now with Paul it is a bit more tricky if Teague continues playing like this, but look at who's available in FA this summer, noone that will put us over the top (other than Dwight and Paul), if Paul is available then you go get him!! I love Teague but stats aren't everything, Paul makes everyone around him better (not saying that Teague doesn't, just saying that Paul does it at another level) and he's a true leader. But also, we don't have to let Teague go, he can come off the bench as 6th man (6th man of the year), we'd be lethal if we brought in Paul and Dwight and had JT0 come off the bench, and Teague would be mentored by best at the PG position.

[tcorbin]

I get what you guys are saying but there's no way I turn away Howard IN FREE AGENCY (I never said I'd give Horford for him, I'd really love for Horford and Dwight to be on the same team.) He's a true C and a 3 time defensive player of the year, even with the injuries he's still dominating on the defensive side of the ball and he's leading the league in rebounds. Now with Paul it is a bit more tricky if Teague continues playing like this, but look at who's available in FA this summer, noone that will put us over the top (other than Dwight and Paul), if Paul is available then you go get him!! I love Teague but stats aren't everything, Paul makes everyone around him better (not saying that Teague doesn't, just saying that Paul does it at another level) and he's a true leader. But also, we don't have to let Teague go, he can come off the bench as 6th man (6th man of the year), we'd be lethal if we brought in Paul and Dwight and had JT0 come off the bench, and Teague would be mentored by best at the PG position.

Teague: 2.4 assist turnover ratio, 2.3rpg, .460FG, .380 3P%......... 16.7 PER

Chris Paul: 4.7 assist turnover ratio, 3.5rpg, .475FG, .345 3P%......... 26.0 PER

Teague is having a good year, he is not that far off from Chris Paul, and i wouldn't mind over paying Teague this summer...... but people are being kind of glib when they say "Teague's numbers are very close to Chris Paul's numbers"

[Jamaaliver]

PER isn't real. It's one of those made up numbers that ESPN numbers geeks use like QBR or WPS.

Paul is more talented than Teague. No doubt. But it comes down more to production and value.

Which is better:

Paul & Zaza. Or Teague and AL Jefferson, and Korver?

For every dollar you save by not pursuing Paul, you get to use it elsewhere. Also, keep in mind that Teague and CP3 have the exact same postseason success rate at this point.