WOJ: BREAKING Westbrook to Houston for CP3 & Picks!!!

doesn't matter, especially when those were mostly the worst teams in the league. last season has no indication that they will do just as well. its a brand new year. new teams, including many of them getting better. take out a mvp caliber player and one of your top defensive wings. yeah they're going to miss them significantly. thinking that they'll pick up where they left off is delusional. they won't hit 50 wins. like i said before around a .500 team, maybe a few games over likely if all goes well for them

 

Chris Paul's first comments about the Rockets trade.

 

And the visual....

 

I think we all know that CP3 is pissed about it. He has a bit of that little man passive-aggressive-extra aggressive pissed off'nish attitude to him.

But that's a-ok. He's always very professional in how he seems to handle the media like this, and anyone would have the right to be a bit pissed about it. After all it is business... he got PAID.

Long-story-short... absent winning a chip, nothing but positives and respect from me for CP3 in his 2 years here. He probably would never get there as the #1, even in his absolute prime, on a team very tailored around him, but he absolutely could have one or more rings very easily as a super important part of a championship team. Those Clippers squads did somewhat underachieve... but only somewhat. In modern NBA, CP3/Blake/DJ is just not enough....

 

Ehhh, might want to hold off on that, in his absolute prime, he was statistically one of the best players ever. He never really had adequate help in NO, at least not on the level some other teams did. Just my opinion though.

 

CP3 would be perfect PG for current Clippers. Pretty ironic.

 

Rockets paid the price for this guy.
I know, I know "almost", "what if", "close", "couldashouldawoulda"...

Patrick Beverley
Lou Williams
Montrezl Harrell
Sam Dekker
Darrun Hilliard
DeAndre Liggins
Kyle Wiltjer
Cash
2018 1st round draft pick
2021 1st round draft pick(swap)
2024 1st round draft pick
2025 1st round draft pick(swap)
2026 1st round draft pick
$160M

 

I generally agree with the concept that most all-time great superstar type players, when surrounded with the right additional talent - which usually means multiple other all-stars - could win a ring as the #1 guy.

HOWEVER, that caveat is a pretty big one as it requires the whole rest of the league to change and ignores that there are other superstars also with the right talent around them.

Meaning, sure, take 2007-2009 CP3, put him on the Celtics in lieu of Pierce, or the Lakers in lieu of Kobe, and one might consider him those teams #1 guy and he might have a ring or two. But just give him a lot more talent in New Orleans those years, and does he get past the Lakers, and the Celtics?? Less clear to me...

 

I'm usually all with you on most things @J.R. , but it should be noted:

Patrick Beverley - personal opinion = overrated. This is a meh player who gets "intense" on defense, but it doesn't really every matter a ton in the playoffs against really good players.

Lou Williams - like Lou, but wasn't going to work with Lou and EG. Lou is better, but EG is the better fit with Harden.

Montrezl Harrell - even Harrell wasn't that good with the Clippers for a bit. Still, I, like many of us, was the most sad to see him go of the package

Sam Dekker - who cares
Darrun Hilliard - who cares
DeAndre Liggins - who cares
Kyle Wiltjer - who cares
Cash - who cares

2018 1st round draft pick - I love picks, so this one also sucked, but everyone loves picks, you got to give to get, and it was the last pick of the first round?

$160M - did the Rockets pay all this?

Long-story short, it was more than fair asset give for CP3...

As for the below... I don't view these assets as part of the same "what did CP3 cost" analogy. We traded those assets with CP3 to get Russell Westbrook. Point in fact, they could have kept CP3 for two years, and then you wouldn't have been able to include them. These are assets required to get Russell Westbrook.

2021 1st round draft pick(swap)
2024 1st round draft pick
2025 1st round draft pick(swap)
2026 1st round draft pick

 

Or the Lakers. Or the Sixers (let Simmons run a bit more). Or the Spurs. As a third guy today, he'd be great on lots of squads... IF he could stay healthy.

 

Russ and CP3 each better than that Outlet Mall sale rack.

 

Even their media day looks sad, lol. Did they shoot this in a high school classroom? (I know I know, the lighting makes it look worse)

 

Sounds like his wife and family isn't following him to OKC. They're either staying in Houston or LA.

 

Hmmm fair enough, I mean I would think he does but we can agree to disagree.

 

Hell, even CP is not long for OKC. Every NBA administrator in the league office wants Chris Paul to be in Miami come the trade deadline.

 

You can see how unhappy he is. Just look at his eyes and body language. He doesn’t have the same glow, he just seem kinda uncomfortable.

I will for sure miss him here but it does seem Harden and Chris were not on the same page, especially during the playoffs.

 

Since we traded for Westbrook our point differential is 69. The numbers are clear as to who won this trade