Chris Paul Opts In; Then Traded To Houston

[fouronesix22]

Who says this is the roster the Rockets roll into 2017/2018 with.... seriously... there are obviously other things going on here. Have some patience.

They have no cap space to sign anyone... No one is going to take that ridiculous ryan anderson contract. Plus if they want more cap relief maybe they get rid of gordon. But then thats really pushing it in terms of depth

That's just your opinion... Anderson is actually a very moveable contract... he was highly sought after last off-season and has always had trade speculation surrounding him. There is no reason to say his contract is "unmoveable" other than your opinion.

Morey/Houston still has plenty of work to do this off-season.

No reason at all to act like on June 28th there roster is set.

The guy gets paid 19 million dollars next season which INCREASES and ends in 2020 for averaging 13 points a game on 41% shooting. To say thats a highly coveted contract for that production is a little bit crazy. Why would anyone want a one trick pony. Im just saying for a 32 point guard who is injury prone and on the down hill of his career, adding the fact that it may not work with Harden I dont think its worth the risk adding Cp3

[Jon1798]

I can't wait for that Pelican death lineup of Paul, Gordon, Ariza and Anderson. I hate life.

[Shock Defeat]

They have no cap space to sign anyone... No one is going to take that ridiculous ryan anderson contract. Plus if they want more cap relief maybe they get rid of gordon. But then thats really pushing it in terms of depth

That's just your opinion... Anderson is actually a very moveable contract... he was highly sought after last off-season and has always had trade speculation surrounding him. There is no reason to say his contract is "unmoveable" other than your opinion.

Morey/Houston still has plenty of work to do this off-season.

No reason at all to act like on June 28th there roster is set.

The guy gets paid 19 million dollars next season which INCREASES and ends in 2020 for averaging 13 points a game on 41% shooting. To say thats a highly coveted contract for that production is a little bit crazy. Why would anyone want a one trick pony. Im just saying for a 32 point guard who is injury prone and on the down hill of his career, adding the fact that it may not work with Harden I dont think its worth the risk adding Cp3

There is no risk in adding cp3, a top 5 pg in the NBA. They gave up a bunch of role players.

[phraoh]

I haven't read in detail, but whose idea was it for Paul to opt in (when he was opting out)? I wish or hope Lebron will do that for us (Cavs) next year if he wants to leave !! I think what Clippers got for him was as good as what Chicago got for Butler....they actually got a # 1 pick (without swapping another one), and got at least 3 useful players...no all stars....but neither did Chicago get one, and Butler had 2 years left !!

From Houston's perspective I wouldn't have wanted to do it this way, since what prevents Paul from leaving in a year? Crazy NBA !!

[phraoh]

And I have never understood the hype on Chris Paul....never has taken a team anywhere, is injured for multiple games every year, is 32 years old, etc. I think the Clippers out to be thanking their lucky stars on this one!!

[supertruck97]

With all of these deals, Morey has put Houston over the cap, which means that starting on July 1st they now have the full MLE and BAE to sign additional help....

[bmurph128]

It's part of more to come... also star players often lead to more star players... its a good thing.

It could theoretically lead to Lebron.

I see it as more CP3/Melo/Wade/LeBron all wanting to go play together after this year.

Harden can't be apart of that...these guys aren't all taking contracts that cheap.

Plus, Wade will probably want to start, and that foursome still needs a center.

I think CP3 just saw an opportunity to give back to LA, and doesn't really mind who he plays for this year.

If we trade Love this year, trade Kyrie next year, we can clear the decks...plus we have LeBron's bird rights which means we could actually sign the other three, then LeBron (who will likely be the most expensive).

Heck, we might not even have to trade Kyrie to do that...but IMO we would if we had to. I don't see Houston trading Harden for that.

Uh yes Harden can.... Rockets can clear lots of cap space next off-season then re-sign free agents they already have the rights too

So you can have Harden, CP3, Melo/pg13, Lebron.... going over the cap to resign your free agents CP3 and potentially PG13 or Melo after signing Lebron... Wade can come along too but he isn't going to command tons of money..

The path is potentially there for the Rockets.... CP3 likely didn't decide to come here to hang out for 1 year with only James Harden... good chance something much bigger is in the works.

So Harden's coming off the bench then? Lol think about it...those guys aren't going to all go player "together" only so that Wade plays minimal minutes because of Harden. And none of those guys are glue/hustle/screen setting types of players. Few of them play any significant defense.

The only real possibility of them actually playing together would be for a team where all 4 can start, and have a 5th guy who does the dirty work. If I were in your shoes maybe I'd try to tell myself something much bigger was in the works too. I think your best case is that they acquire another star and convince CP3 to stay after that (which is still a pretty good case).

The Cavs can free up the salary needed (as can a slew of other teams), and would have the added benefit of LeBron not leaving, which could damage his legacy in some people's eyes. They' have also shown that they might be willing to trade Kyrie.

I just don't see those guys wanting to play with Harden though. If Houston was going to trade him, then I could see it.

[HotTubMike]

They have no cap space to sign anyone... No one is going to take that ridiculous ryan anderson contract. Plus if they want more cap relief maybe they get rid of gordon. But then thats really pushing it in terms of depth

That's just your opinion... Anderson is actually a very moveable contract... he was highly sought after last off-season and has always had trade speculation surrounding him. There is no reason to say his contract is "unmoveable" other than your opinion.

Morey/Houston still has plenty of work to do this off-season.

No reason at all to act like on June 28th there roster is set.

The guy gets paid 19 million dollars next season which INCREASES and ends in 2020 for averaging 13 points a game on 41% shooting. To say thats a highly coveted contract for that production is a little bit crazy. Why would anyone want a one trick pony. Im just saying for a 32 point guard who is injury prone and on the down hill of his career, adding the fact that it may not work with Harden I dont think its worth the risk adding Cp3

Anderson is one of the best and most proven stretch 4's in the entire NBA a league where shooting the 3 is at a premium. To act like it is some sort of unmoveable albatross of a contract has no basis in reality. You think Houston gave him that contract out of the kindness of their heart? There has been in the past and assuredly continues to be a ton of interest in Ryan Anderson. You're underselling him hard. "unmoveable" - lol.

Houston had to make aggresive moves. They have a star in his prime. They needed to try and build a contender for him. Obviously, just bringing back the entire 2016/2017 team was not going to do it. So Morey got aggressive. I'm super happy. I think he has more moves up his sleeve and I think CP3+Harden could attract other free agents including Lebron.

[infintybeyond]

Interesting trade. Both guys dominate the ball, but both are great play makers and can shoot. If they take turns running the offense, either play maker is surrounded by legit, well established 3pt shooters something CP3 didn't have in LAC. We shall see what COY Pringles can do. I like the trade for Houston. They didn't really give up much while maintaining their shooters.

I don't know where the Clippers go from here. They lost the guy who runs the offense. Blake isn't a super star anymore and is often injured. We will see if DOC makes the right adjustments or if he continues to run the same stupid offense with his son starting. They really wasted DJ's potential by not developing any offensive skills. KAJ is across the hall. We all saw what he did with Bynum.

[zshawn10]

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[inquisitive]

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Anderson definitely gone if this happens.

[HotTubMike]

I see it as more CP3/Melo/Wade/LeBron all wanting to go play together after this year.

Harden can't be apart of that...these guys aren't all taking contracts that cheap.

Plus, Wade will probably want to start, and that foursome still needs a center.

I think CP3 just saw an opportunity to give back to LA, and doesn't really mind who he plays for this year.

If we trade Love this year, trade Kyrie next year, we can clear the decks...plus we have LeBron's bird rights which means we could actually sign the other three, then LeBron (who will likely be the most expensive).

Heck, we might not even have to trade Kyrie to do that...but IMO we would if we had to. I don't see Houston trading Harden for that.

Uh yes Harden can.... Rockets can clear lots of cap space next off-season then re-sign free agents they already have the rights too

So you can have Harden, CP3, Melo/pg13, Lebron.... going over the cap to resign your free agents CP3 and potentially PG13 or Melo after signing Lebron... Wade can come along too but he isn't going to command tons of money..

The path is potentially there for the Rockets.... CP3 likely didn't decide to come here to hang out for 1 year with only James Harden... good chance something much bigger is in the works.

So Harden's coming off the bench then? Lol think about it...those guys aren't going to all go player "together" only so that Wade plays minimal minutes because of Harden. And none of those guys are glue/hustle/screen setting types of players. Few of them play any significant defense.

The only real possibility of them actually playing together would be for a team where all 4 can start, and have a 5th guy who does the dirty work. If I were in your shoes maybe I'd try to tell myself something much bigger was in the works too. I think your best case is that they acquire another star and convince CP3 to stay after that (which is still a pretty good case).

The Cavs can free up the salary needed (as can a slew of other teams), and would have the added benefit of LeBron not leaving, which could damage his legacy in some people's eyes. They' have also shown that they might be willing to trade Kyrie.

I just don't see those guys wanting to play with Harden though. If Houston was going to trade him, then I could see it.

You realize in two season D-wade will be 37? You expect him to demand to start and play tons of minutes? Nonsense... he knows his role and at 37 with shot knees I doubt he demands to start.

Of course Harden isn't coming off the bench for 37 year old D-wade.

CP3 and Lebron are close it's not far fetched at all Lebron would decide to come to Houston to team up with CP3/Harden and whoever else.

While you might personally disdain Harden, he is obviously respected by CP3 and other players in the league. CP3 just forced his way to Houston to play with Harden.

Banana boat + Harden is obviously better than Banana boat without Harden.

Morey obviously has some more stuff in the works.... also, everyone around the league pretty much agrees Lebron staying in Cleveland is not a forgone conclusion... he will go to the best situation possible and we all know he wants to team up with CP3. You sound like you're trying to convince yourself Lebron will never leave you again. Nothing indicates that. He very well could.

Pretty silly to think CP3 is just coming to Houston to hang out for a year and then jet.... good chance with a core of CP3/Harden and maybe a third star the new super team starts here..... it could include Lebron.

[LikeABosh]

I brought them up to illustrate that Harden was a beneficiary of not rewarding winning this year. It would come down to Kawhi vs Durant or Curry if it was only about winning. The fact that it came down to Harden and Westbrook was because of an emphasis on individual stats in the first place.

Okay, and? I'm talking about the front runners in 2015 and 2017. I wasn't commenting on how we decided they're front runners or who should be the front runners. I'm only comparing team success and individual accomplishments relative to each other. Not to the rest of the league. If Harden beat out Westbrook with the tie breaker of team success then it would make no sense to say, "Well, if it's all about winning then give it to Durant." Huh? Durant, Curry and Kawhi are irrelevant in this discussion. Saying Harden is the MVP over everyone else because of team success and saying Harden could've beat out Westbrook because of team success are two completely different ideas. You seem to think I'm arguing for the former

How are other MVP candidates irrelevant?

I literally just explained it.

[reload141]

Have to think they will get Melo now, don't think they have the assets to trade for PG

[jpengland]

This is going to be a trainwreck.

Harden and Paul are pretty much the worst possible combo. Both HUGE usage and both want to be the 'alpha'.

Doesn't address any of their weaknesses as Gordon and Beverley were pretty much the perfect backcourt mates for Harden.

Whilst getting a play of Paul's calibre for so little is always a good move on paper, I think they regret this when they scrape the playoffs and Paul leaves next summer, meanwhile you've also alienated Harden.

Huge risk. And I don't think it pays off.

[mtron929]

This is going to be a trainwreck.

Harden and Paul are pretty much the worst possible combo. Both HUGE usage and both want to be the 'alpha'.

Doesn't address any of their weaknesses as Gordon and Beverley were pretty much the perfect backcourt mates for Harden.

Whilst getting a play of Paul's calibre for so little is always a good move on paper, I think they regret this when they scrape the playoffs and Paul leaves next summer, meanwhile you've also alienated Harden.

Huge risk. And I don't think it pays off.

But what is the risk? Lou Williams, Patrick Beverly, and Dekker are the main components of the trade and none of these guys are that great nor are they rising superstars. The 2018 pick will be probably in the 25-30th range so what is the risk here? The Rockets were not going to beat the Warriors anyway so why not just raise the ceiling (as well as lowering the floor) of the team by adding a top 10 player?

[Bruteque]

Harden-CP3-Gordon is going to be a scary 3-guard rotation for D'Antoni. The Harden-Gordon lineup looked great last season, but they couldn't afford to run it that much. Looking forward to seeing some Harden-CP3 and CP3-Gordon attack-pass-attack action instead of just Harden kick out catch and shoot.

Is Nene going to be back or is HOU going to need to perform some of their Dawson big man magic again and make another Capela/Harrell out of Zhou/Hartenstein? With Harrell traded, does this mean they change their tune and offer Hartenstein a contract this year? Well, let's see who their 3rd piece is first, if it involves Gordon and they have to stagger CP3 and Harden as they have with Harden-Gordon, then it won't be as fun.

This is getting interesting.

[zshawn10]

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[jpengland]

This is going to be a trainwreck.

Harden and Paul are pretty much the worst possible combo. Both HUGE usage and both want to be the 'alpha'.

Doesn't address any of their weaknesses as Gordon and Beverley were pretty much the perfect backcourt mates for Harden.

Whilst getting a play of Paul's calibre for so little is always a good move on paper, I think they regret this when they scrape the playoffs and Paul leaves next summer, meanwhile you've also alienated Harden.

Huge risk. And I don't think it pays off.

But what is the risk? Lou Williams, Patrick Beverly, and Dekker are the main components of the trade and none of these guys are that great nor are they rising superstars. The 2018 pick will be probably in the 25-30th range so what is the risk here? The Rockets were not going to beat the Warriors anyway so why not just raise the ceiling (as well as lowering the floor) of the team by adding a top 10 player?

The risk is the alienation of Harden,the waste of a year and the opportunity cost of the other .Ives they could have made.

I guess, again, on paper, it's not a risk.

But to me this ends in a totally blown up and depleted roster next year. With or without a disgruntled Harden and I seriously don't see any way that this ends well.

Adding Melo would simply make things even worse.

[Pointgod]

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Paul Milsap would be a solid addition although I think he only has to years of productivity. Pretty decent defensive front court of Milsap, Ariza and Capela.