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Chris Paul (3) of Oklahoma City Thunder fights against the Houston Rockets in the third quarter of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday August 22, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, in Florida (Mike Ehrmann / Pool Photo via AP)
Most Valley sports fans have woken up to a whole rumor about Chris Paul and the Phoenix Suns.
On Tuesday night, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Tom Bontemps reported that the Suns have had discussions with the Oklahoma City Thunder over acquiring the All-NBA point guard once the league’s new year begins.
Windhorst joined Wednesday Arizona Sports Bickley and Marotta to elaborate on the recent rumblings.
“It’s a three-sided business. It’s just as much about the Suns having talks with Chris Paul as they are about the Thunder, ”Windhorst said. “From what I understand the Suns have been given permission to communicate with Chris Paul and before engaging in any conversations they talked about commercial items but it must be Chris Paul going to the Thunder and saying : ‘Phoenix is where I want to be. Let’s try to make a deal.
“I know Chris Paul is interested in the Suns. It’s about whether he basically says this is where I want to go and it’s probably up to Phoenix and Chris to find a solution.
Paul is entering the new year after an All-NBA season in which he led the OKC to the playoffs. He averaged 17.6 points and 6.7 assists per game and was named to the All-Star squad for the first time since 2016.
One of the biggest issues that has come up is the price of Paul. He has two years left on his contract, earning $ 41.4 million next season and has a player option of $ 44.2 million for the following year. For the Suns to trade a trade for the point guard, players like Kelly Oubre Jr. and Ricky Rubio could be the Weird Men.
However, Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro learned that the Thunder didn’t want any multi-year contracts in return and have no real interest in Oubre or Rubio.
But even with the ceiling situation and the prospect that Oubre Jr. and Rubio could be dispatched out of town, Windhorst believes the acquisition certainly outweighs the losses.
Especially if the new addition keeps goaltender Devin Booker happy as the team look to return to the playoffs for the first time in a decade.
“What I do know is the Suns can potentially close a deal for an All-NBA player without capping themselves with the salary cap – It’s an expensive contract, but where their cap is, they can afford it very. frankly, ”Windhorst said. “And the other thing is they have to send a message to Devin Booker to tell him that they really want to improve talent. This clock is ticking, no matter what anybody says, this clock is ticking.
“Then you get to the functional reality that this is a young roster that needs a loud voice. … Chris Paul controls the locker room, controls the click, he controls the ground, he controls the bus, he controls the plane, everything. It encompasses everything.
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