NBA: Oklahoma City Thunder at Chicago Bulls
Chris Paul has garnered interest from the Philadelphia 76ers but getting him is a bit complicated. (Photo: Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports)

The Philadelphia 76ers have become the latest team to be linked to Chris Paul and it makes a lot of sense. But if one factors in the money matters, complications arise. Most know that the 10-time NBA All-Star carries a huge $85 million value, $41 million of which is due this 2020-21 season.

The immediate thing that comes to mind is dealing away some players. Ben Simmons leads the likely candidates plus Tobias Harris and Josh Richardson. The bottom line here is that the Sixers need to do the numbers crunch to complete a Chris Paul trade.

According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, the Sixers are among the interested teams from the Eastern Conference. The other team is the New York Knicks, a club that needs a point guard and proven leader. But with the contract he carries, Tom Thibodeau may explore other options. A name being associated with them is Russell Westbrook who allegedly wants out of the Houston Rockets.

   

Aside from filling the point guard hole, a Chris Paul coming to Philly would also reunite him with former coach Doc Rivers. Most know how the two worked together with the Los Angeles Clippers from 2013 to 2017. Though that did not result in an NBA title, Rivers’ familiarity with CP3 could be a driving factor towards completing a deal.

Incidentally, Paul has also been linked to a move to the Clippers. Kawhi Leonard is believed to be anchoring a potential return to Los Angeles. But like the Sixers, the Clips need to figure out how to handle the $85 million contract that the 35-year-old carries. Much of this was covered in a previous post.

Paul showed critics that he can still play at a certain level if given the chance. Last season, he averaged 17.6 points, 6.7 assists and 5.0 rebounds in 31.5 minutes of action. Looking beyond the numbers, Paul was also able to rebuke the belief that his history of injuries hints at him retiring from NBA ball soon. The fact that he was able to play more games with the rebuilding Thunder says a lot.

Also, it would be best to note that Paul’s leadership is immeasurable. That was also in full display in OKC where Paul led the young players of the team. That included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who has come into his own.

For now, any NBA team needs to figure out how they can address the $41 million due to Paul for the coming NBA season. Hence, it would be best to take these all with a grain of salt for now.