The Houston Rockets, like all other NBA teams, is headed to massive changes after losing to Golden State Warriors in the second round of the Western Conference Finals of the NBA. There were several reports, which the team vehemently denied, that two of their biggest stars, Chris Paul and James Harden are not in good terms and no longer wish to work together.
It seems that Houston Rockets has already decided to move forward with James Harden and is now trying to move Chris Paul to another NBA team. However, based on reports, it seems that the team is having a hard time about that.
The Athletic reporter Sham Charania was quoted on a recent CBS Sports show that the Houston Rockets is basically giving away Chris Paul, but there has been very little interest. When teams were told that Rockets is going to trade Chris Paul, most of the responses from the team are, "we're good," said the reporter.
The Ringer reported recently that Houston Rockets tried to move Chris Paul to New York Knicks but the team refused. The NBA star has an impressive list of accomplishment. He is eight times All NBA selection, nine times NBA All-star, nine times NBA All-star defensive team member, an NBA All-star game MVP, rookie of the Year, and six times NBA steals leader.
But why doesn't any team in the league want to trade for him in spite of the reports that he wants out of his current team (or the other way around)? One of the possible reasons is that Chris Paul is 34 years old, and over the years, sports enthusiasts have seen his declining production.
Aside from that, according to NJ.com, he has owed a huge amount of money on his contract. Taking him in would mean the responsibility of the team trading for him, which includes a whopping $38.5 million in the upcoming NBA season.
At present, it is still not clear what NBA team could trade for Chris Paul. The LA Lakers could be a possible fit given that LeBron James and Chris Paul are known to be longtime friends, and he could trade with Kyle Kuzma. However, the team has almost no cap space available to absorb Chris Paul's residual money.
The NBA star could also go to Minnesota Timberwolves for a package of players lead by Andrew Wiggins. The Houston Rockets could also trade Chris Paul to the Miami Heat for a five-player deal which includes Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside.
