The Phoenix Suns are finalizing a deal to acquire Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star guard Chris Paul, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 16, 2020
As per the report, the veteran point guard might go to the Phoenix Suns. During the bubble restart, only one team was undefeated and it was the Suns. They fell short to enter the post-season playoffs due to the lack of wins. The Suns have a young core that may prove to be good in a few years.
Sun’s current roster consists of young stars like Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton. It would be beneficial to keep a talent like Booker to be willing to stay for the Suns. Chris Paul has one of the highest basketball IQ in the game right now. It could make the team better in terms of playmaking.
Chris Paul has a history of switching teams and making them better. He was drafted as a New Orleans Hornets which went from the bottom to a good team. Then he was traded to LA Clippers which was known as Lob City during that time. Though unsuccessful in going to the western conference finals, most fans still tune in to watch the Clippers.
When Chris Paul went to Houston Rockets, that made the Harden-Paul duo. The narrative was that the Rockets may have a chance to win the NBA Championship since they were the top seed in the west. Only one team was a threat to them and it was the dominating team of Golden State Warriors which had Kevin Durant.
The Western Conference Finals consisted of both teams playing until game 7 of the series. The turning point of the series was during the final seconds of game 5 where Chris Paul had an injury that forced him not to play the remaining of the series. The Golden State Warriors then beat the Houston Rockets to advance in the NBA Finals.
Even though the OKC team that Chris Paul played was eliminated in the first round, they still overachieved in terms of fan’s expectations. They finished 5th seed in the western conference and took the Houston Rockets to a 7 game series. Chris Paul facilitated the plays that proved to be annoying for the Rockets. The OKC team are in a rebuilding phase but still went to the playoffs.
OKC is willing to trade Chris Paul to invest in their future. In terms of a first-round draft pick, the OKC team currently owns 16 First-round draft pick. It is very likely they could get a generational talent among that pick.
The OKC has had a good eye in terms of getting a star player. They have acquired 3 MVPs in their team which is now traded. Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and James Harden all came from OKC but were not compatible to win a ring in their resume. It would be interesting in the next few years on who the OKC will get in the picks.
Meanwhile, Phoenix Suns are still not done in getting other players. It has been reported that they are interested in getting Danilo Gallinari and Montrezl Harrell. Gallinari has shown have good chemistry when playing with Chris Paul and Harrell is the reigning Sixth Man of the Year.
