Casually? Not at all. I'm sure he went Jerry McGuire on him because he's worth a ****load of money in commission. I think it's ridiculous to not think it. Far too many coincidences to not be the case, plus Chris Paul has not shown to have this kind of temperament. In an attempt to win his services, they're attempting to show what they can do to make him richer. It's easily the most plausible scenario. CP3 has zero incentive to play along with the Hornets. If he wanted to be traded, he could force their hand easily. Look for further than Baron Davis as a prime example. Look for the Hornets to start making some moves to improve the team WITH Chris Paul remaining in NOLA...
The Hornets New GM won't trade Chris Paul because he doesn't want to come in and immediately trade the franchise malcontent....er....player. He probably thinks that he can manage CP and buys the BS that CP comes out with about he "Just wants to win here in New Orleans" and I'm a team guy etc. Fact is CP is an admitted malcontent that wants to take the next train outta here where he can "win" and, most assuredly won't perform to the same standards that he has in the last several years here. His head just isn't in the game anymore. All it takes is a very small mental lapse to greatly affect your game in the NBA. As for the new GM, he is like a girl who finds out that her fiancee has been cheating on her, but goes ahead with the marriage anyway because she believes that her fiancee is telling the truth when he says..."It won't happen again, I promise"...and she just knows that her faithfulness to him will bring him around. Demps would serve the franchise better by parlaying those last two years of Paul's contract into something more tangible...like a couple of starters and a first round draft pick. Instead, it looks like we're going to waste that asset (Paul's contract). and not get further in the playoffs than we did before. And still be left with nothing after Paul leaves.
The new GM doesn't want to trade Chris Paul because he doesn't want to see his team playing in front of crowds of 7,000 - 9,000 people. Monte Williams had a great interview on Mike & Mike today and addresses the CP3 situation directly. I'll see if I can find it tomorrow.
You're right on, MLU...but... If Chris Paul starts playing like Baron Davis did, and the Saints have another season like last year, the Hornets really will be playing in front of small crowds next season...Chris Paul or no Chris Paul. And if this oil moratorium really takes hold and we lose 30,000 jobs and oil companies begin consolidating operations in Houston, the Hornets will be a moot point and an afterthought anyway.
Chris Paul has decided not to ask the New Orleans Hornets for a trade | NOLA.com Glad to see that everyone has decided to "play along". Hopefully thr ship has been pointed in the right direction, but we won't know for a couple years if it's enough to get CP3 to stay. Monty Williams interview on Mike & Mike: ESPN Radio
I'm still skeptical CP3 doesn't want out of New Orleans? If anybody believes the Times-Picuyane article, I'm throw in the Statue of Liberty along with the Brooklyn Bridge for sale, two for the price for one. Even in the article, CP3 is quoted that its all about winning, codeword that he wants out because the Hornets suck. After all, what could the GM have said in that meeting to change CP3's mind about how good the Hornets will be? Does anybody really believe the new GM that the Hornets will be contenders? If the Hornets could build a championship caliber team around CP3 this off-season, then CP3 would change his mind. But, the Hornets are still saddled with bad contracts, and there's not even any big-time free agents left who would be game changers. I challenge anybody here to put on their GM cap on, and show the moves that the Hornets could make to make the Hornets good enough to challenge the Heat or the Lakers. I don't see the Hornets having a lot of pieces they could trade to get better, except for CP3 or Collison. Do they have an expiring contract to trade? The Hornets probably warned Chris Paul that there was no way they would trade him if they couldn't get value from him. And, as long as he was disruptive, he was damaging the Hornets leverage and making it less likely they'd get fair value from him. So, in everybody's best interests, CP3 would play along and the Hornets would try to shop him. But, if he doesn't get traded, expect to hear more stories and leaks from Chris Paul's camp about how unhappy he is. Its even more ridiculous that Maverick Carter went rogue or maverick and pulled all this off without CP3's consent. Chris Paul went along with this plan, knew about it, and consented to it. If you think CP3 is just an innocent bystander, I know about some money in a hidden Nigerian bank vault that I can't access but it can all be yours if you wire him some money first.
This article basically says that Chris Paul is a tool whose being misled by his advisers who have their own self serving interests at heart. The agency representing Paul wants to create a few super teams so that they can sign more players than anyone else. Everyone else would turn into "cannon fodder" and the whole league will suffer. It also said that CP's reputation is badly hurt by the agency...which speaks for him. New Orleans Hornets' Chris Paul in midst of power struggle between players, ownership | NOLA.com
