NBA: Trading For Chris Paul Could Spell Disaster For The New York Knicks

KEY POINTS

Knicks targetting Chris Paul in the offseason
A trade could spell disaster for New York
Leon Rose's close ties with CP3 could affect the plan for summer

The New York Knicks are looking at the possibility of signing 15-year veteran guard Chris Paul in the offseason, a report said. But analysts believe such a move is not what the doctor ordered for New York which is in desperation mode riding of a catastrophic period marked by several losing records and skids.

ESPN’s Frank Isola posted on Thursday that the Knicks are allegedly “gathering intel” to keep the 34-year-old All-Star on their radar for the upcoming summer when NBA teams are expected to hit the annual roster shakeup frenzy.

“The Knicks, according to NBA sources, have been gathering intel on All-Star Chris Paul and could make a run at him this summer. Paul, 34, carries a huge contract but he’s had a resurgent season in OKC & is proven leader,” Isola wrote as he also cited that the Thunder’s starting PG’s close ties with the Knicks’ newly appointed president of basketball operations Leon Rose could be a huge factor in putting the said plan into fruition.

Paul, who was sent by the Houston Rockets to Oklahoma City in a deal that involved fellow All-Star Russell Westbrook prior to the start of the season, is having a rejuvenated season thus far with the Thunder. He is averaging 17.5 points on 49 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent beyond the arc, 5 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game while leading a relatively young OKC squad, who were supposedly not in the business to contend this year, at the sixth spot of the Western Conference carrying an impressive 37-23 win-loss card that earned him his 10^th All-Star nod and his first in four years.

Looking at the numbers, one could suggest that Paul is indeed an attractive trade target right now. But the fact is, he is not, as scheming a deal to acquire him would cost the Knicks some significant assets which might include some of the team’s promising young guns.

A reporter from SB Nation’s Posting and Toasting sees the same and cited, “If the Knicks were to land CP3, they’d have to do so via trade. The general manager of the Thunder, Sam Presti, isn’t going to give Paul to the Knicks for castoffs. It’s safe to assume that any CP3 deal would need to include either draft picks, one or more of the promising youngsters, or all of the above.”