Paul is a better player than Roy. I love Roy and, in fact, think he could potentially have a Hall of Fame career...but Paul is guaranteed to be an inner circle Hall of Famer, assuming no major injuries. I would certainly trade Roy for Paul (though, in the short term, Paul wouldn't exactly fit well with Miller...but the chance to get Paul is still too great to let that stand in the way). Of course, it would be nice to get Paul without giving up Roy or Oden. I think a lot of Aldridge, but A. you have to give up something to get something and B. I think ultimately Oden will be the more valuable player. Aldridge, Fernandez, Bayless, Outlaw and draft picks? They could play Aldridge at center, giving them a very talented front court of Aldridge/West. Outlaw is a better option now than a fading Stojakovic and Rudy gives them a talented and exciting backcourt player while Bayless gives them a prospect to dream on. This would be a perfect example of a consolidation deal to me...Portland gives up a lot of talent, but ends up with one big-time player that significantly upgrades their top three players. Playing around with the Trade Checker, though, it's pretty hard to put together a deal due to Paul's BYC status. I didn't spend too much time trying to make it work, so I'm just talking about the outlines of what I'd like to see, not specific details to make the numbers work. Aldridge/Bayless/Fernandez/Outlaw for Paul/Armstrong came close. In the short-term, though, it creates significant problems. Three point guards (though, I'd push Blake to back up shooting guard, since his role is mostly to shoot from the perimeter)...that still leaves Miller as a backup in every way. I think he might have a problem with playing only 18 minutes at most. It also leaves Portland with no power forward of note. This big an overhaul would require further moves.
It's pure fantasy to think we could get Paul without giving up one of our Big Three. This isn't Pau Gasol we're talking about here. It's one of the top 3 players in the entire league. Possibly the best point guard since Magic. The interesting question to me is which of our three do you give up? Oden has too much upside, IMO. So it comes down to Roy vs Aldridge. Aldridge seems a better fit next to Paul than Roy does. It'd be the Paul/West/Chandler trio on a freakin' massive dose of steroids, with a decent bench and nice role players. Although I'd be just as happy to give up Aldridge to get Paul, come to think of it.
I suggested Roy for Paul because (1) unless you are Memphis colluding with Stern and the Lakers, you have to give an all-star to get an all-star, and (2) I don't think Roy can coexist with Paul, and (3) I'd rather have Paul. I suggested Miller because they'd need a guard back, Blake wouldn't cut it, and Miller would be redundant and would be unhappy coming off our bench, while Blake would be a fine backup for us. I threw in Travis to give them replaceable value to get 'er done. Paul would make all our other players better, and the trade would clear up chemistry and playing time issues. I'm sure it probably doesn't work on the trade machine, that's not my thing, so flame away. Mostly though, I suggested it to see the response.
This. CP3 is an amazing player but I can't imagine Portland even considering trading Roy. What he has done for the team goes beyond his contributions on the floor.
Get League Pass and watch as many Hornets games as you possibly can then ... Brandon's fun to watch and is a stud in his own right, but CP3 is a marvel at the point guard position, he's easily one of my favorite non-Blazers to watch play, and is probably one of the smartest, toughest guys in the league.
It's a no-brainer for me as well, and I love what Roy does. The only player I wouldn't trade for Paul at this point is Oden, although I'd think long about it.
I wouldn't either. I know there are a lot of fans who would. Today, I think it would be taking a risk to 'not' do it if offered, but I'd be willing to take that risk. We have enough pieces on this team that if Oden pans out the way he should, I'd simply have to go with the monster center for our championship run over the monster point guard.
Agree, he is exciting. You give him this group of talent Portland has. He will be that much more fun.
He has made the Hornets a fun team to watch, and he's single-handedly kept Byron Scott in the league as a head coach.
moving Brandon for Paul inserts Rudy as the starting 2... that would seem to be an outstanding backcourt. I think quite a bit of Roy's ability, but this would be an upgrade both in talent of the individuals and (seemingly) chemistry on the court. How many lob dunks would Greg get a game? regarding your later post, why would they want LA when they have David West and Okafor? STOMP
I just wonder if you can win with it all with a PG like Paul. The closest equivalent is Isiah Thomas (ball dominant, scoring and distributing). Guards like KJ and Tim Hardaway never did it. I mean, does Paul really make his team better? I dunno, but he is possibly the most ball-dominant player in the league. And Chauncey Billups just abused him in the playoffs, as does Deron Williams (whom I'd actually prefer) every time they play. That said, I would trade LaMarcus for him, just because he drives me crazy. It's probably not the optimal move, because we don't have a current replacement for him (because we didn't draft Blair), although we do have potentially solid players down the road in Claver and Freeland and probably Pendergraph (who I see as a Loy Vaught type) and we do have Rudy RIGHT NOW. But I agree that you just don't trade Roy. That would be like the Lakers trading Magic. Or the Hornets trading Chris Paul... But what leverage does Paul have? When's the soonest he can opt out?
Financially, I'm sure they wouldn't. West has about $17.2 million left over the next 2 years, while LMA will be a 4-5 year commitment. On the other hand, if the idea is to shed as much payroll as possible, how about adding LMA to Roy and adding West to Paul? That way, NO could let LMA go after this year and plug in a much cheaper player on a rookie contract.
I think Rudy would get quite a few lob dunks too. Well, if they had to deal Paul, they'd be in complete tear-down mode, I would think. West would probably be the next guy to get moved. Maybe West gets added to the deal and we dump Outlaw and Bayless or something?
We aren't likely to replace Aldridge or Oden if we traded one for Paul. But Paul effectively replaces Roy, and improves the overall team chemistry and ball movement. Miller/Roy/Nico/Aldridge/Oden vs. Paul/Rudy/Nico/Aldridge/Oden I'll take the second team. Paul upgrades Roy, slightly, and Rudy next to a great PG upgrades Miller, long term if not immediately. It's clear who should be handling the ball, so no one is being taken out of 'their game.' I think it's a more effective offensive group.
This statement doesn't hold much water until we win a championship. If we can win a championship with the ball in Roy's hands, I will agree with you. Personally, I think Chris Paul is a guaranteed first ballot HOFer. Roy is still debatable. Also, Paul is a legitimate quadruple-double threat. That is something very few players can actually claim.
Based on some of these posts, you would think that Chris Paul is the face of this franchise and not Roy.
