Rumors: Warriors reportedly interested in acquiring Chris Paul
On Sunday, the Phoenix Suns shocked many around the NBA when they agreed to a trade with the Washington Wizards to acquire Bradley Beal for Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, second-round picks, and some pick swaps. However, it seems like the Wizards are not done making deals involving big-name players. According to a report by Shams Charania, the Wizards are looking to trade Paul elsewhere. Per Charania, the Golden State Warriors had reached out to the Suns about acquiring Paul and remain a potential landing spot.
“For now, the Wizards are going to try to see if they can flip him to a third team,” Charania said during an appearance on FanDuel TV. ”A couple teams to keep an eye on — the Clippers, the Warriors. Those are teams that did discuss potential deals with the Suns prior to this trade going down.”
It’s unclear exactly how the Warriors intend to make a move to acquire the 38-year-old Paul. If they acquired him in a trade, they would almost assuredly have to guarantee him his full $30.8 million salary for the 2023-24 season. While they may think he’s worth that much money, they would have to send back a comparable amount in a trade. The most obvious potential fit is young combo guard Jordan Poole, who is set to make nearly $28 million next season. Would the Dubs be willing to give up a young piece like Poole for just Paul, or would they need to acquire an additional player or pick as well?
Given Paul’s struggles to stay healthy over the grind of a full NBA season, it’s actually fairly easy to see how he could fit on the Warriors. Paul would be an incredibly overqualified backup point guard to Steph Curry, who could presumably benefit from a lighter workload. He has never averaged fewer than 31.4 minutes per game in a season.
Last year, with the Suns, Paul averaged 13.9 points, 8.9 assists, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game on .440/.375/.831 shooting in 59 games. He was not as effective in the postseason but did remain a solid contributor.
Paul obviously has a lot of history facing the Warriors, particularly during his tenure with the Clippers and Rockets, but according to Charania’s latest report, he could soon be defecting to the Dubs. Do you think Paul could help the Warriors next season? Would you be willing to trade Jordan Poole straight up to do it? Let us know in the comments!
Source: Golden State of Mind
