Can the Golden State Warriors find trade options for Chris Paul?
With speculation continuing to swirl around the team’s star shooting guard, the Warriors have also got to deal with their recently signed veteran point guard.
It would be fair to say that when the Warriors acquired the former Suns floor general, eyebrows were raised. How was a team that was already well-balanced albeit not a contender going to incorporate a player who was accustomed to being a starter, into a team that had one of the greatest players in league history playing in the same position? Clearly, it didn’t work and here we are.
Warriors have a problem with Chris Paul
According to reports, the Golden State Warriors are still on the hunt for a willing trade partner for veteran guard Chris Paul. As per ESPN, the 39-year-old has an agreement in place with the franchise that will see the date to guarantee his $30 million salary for the upcoming 2024-25 season pushed back to the start of free agency on Sunday.
We can only assume that the additional two days will be used by the Warriors to explore possible trade options before his contract becomes guaranteed ahead of free agency. To that end, one has to believe that the Warriors - assuming they find a trade option - will use his $30 million contract to leverage any potential trade. Where the Warriors’ apparent hopes are concerned, reports suggest that the team is currently targeting a sign-and-trade deal involving the Los Angeles Clippers’ Paul George.
ESPN Sources: Golden State and Chris Paul intend to move back the date to guarantee the $30 million on his 2024-2025 contract to the start of free agency on Sunday. Deadline was originally today. This gives Warriors time to keep exploring trades.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 28, 2024
Of course, there is another option i.e., the Warriors could waive Paul before his $30 million salary becomes guaranteed. Should that prove to be the case, it would admittedly be a strange outcome considering the history between Paul and the Warriors. This, after all, was a player who was the central reason for the team’s playoff elimination in 2014 and was a key figure in 2018 and 2019 despite losing efforts. The point is, we’re talking about a player that the Warriors wanted for some time and subsequently pursued until they acquired him. That said, Paul’s average of 9.2 points and 6.8 assists in a career-low 26.4 minutes per game did not turn heads and so, here we are. As we always say, watch this space.
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