LA's New Dynamic Duo

Blog by Haz Bey
It's a done deal, finally.  The Clippers have landed top point guard Chris Paul to go along side NBA Rookie of the Year Blake Griffin.  The on-going saga came to an end and Chris Paul finally made it out of his New Orleans imprisonment enforced by the league.  The Hornets get Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, Al-Farouq Aminu & the Timberwolves 2012 1st round pick in return for the Chris Paul's services.  The Clippers' brain-trust wanted to pair up Chris Paul and Blake Griffin to form one of the most devastating tandems the league has ever seem.  Imagine those two running the pick-and-roll all game long.  It would be like Stockton to Malone on steroids.  By joining the Clippers Chris Paul revoked his player option of his contract until the summer of 2013 which gives the Clippers 2 years to prove to him that they will be a championship contender for years to come.  The first huge piece has fallen this season, now lets see where Dwight Howard and Deron Williams will be come the trade deadline set for March 15th.

Dwight Howard... Off The Trade Market

Haz Bey

The Orlando Magic has spoken.  No more offers for Dwight Howard.  The Magic truly believe that they can keep Dwight Howard in a Orlando uniform for years to come.  Gm Otis Smith was not satisfied with the offers presented to him for Dwight and now is ready to bring in another legit star to play alongside of him via trade.  That is a dangerous card that Otis Smith is playing, because "Superman" wants to be a champion and I do not see that ever happening with the Orlando Magic.  With the Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls & New York Knicks competing in the Eastern Conference, there is no room for the Magic to even get to the NBA Finals even with Dwight Howard's greatness.  Dwight would have a better shot joining Kobe in L.A. or Dirk in Dallas.  My gut feeling is that "Superman" will walk at the end of the season, just like Shaq did in '96 for nothing.  Orlando can not let history repeat itself, but if they don't make a move with Dwight whether it's him signing the extension or they trade him before the March 15th trade deadline, either way they need to pull the trigger before Dwight stabs them in the back.

David Stern says "No, No, No"... When it's really like "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah"

Shell-Shocked

Never in NBA history has anything like this has happened.  For of a matter of fact, maybe never in American pro sports.  The New Orleans Hornets traded All-Star point guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers as part of a 3-team trade that included the Houston Rockets acquiring All-Star forward/center Pau Gasol.  In return the Hornets received Sixth Man of the Year award winner and 2-time NBA champion Lamar Odom, Louis Scola who last year averaged 18 ppg and 8 rpg, Kevin Martin who last year averaged 23.5 ppg, Goran Dragic who dropped 23 points in the 4th quarter of a playoff game against the San Antonio Spurs & a 2012 1st round draft pick.  At first glance all parties involved seemed to be making out just fine with what they got in return, especially the Hornets, but enter "The Haters".  These "Haters" are led by disgruntled Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and longtime Laker hater Mavs owner Mark Cuban.  Both owners were 2 of the 5 owners that voted against the new CBA and were very passionate about their disliking of the Lakers acquiring another potential Hall of Famer.  Sad thing is their comments didn't fall on def ears.  David Stern heard all of it and right before Chris Paul was ready to pack his things to go to Hollywood, David Stern vetoed the trade. 



The Haters

David Stern did not want the backlash of the owners that did not want to sign the new CBA, but what's crazy is the fact that he didn't foresee the backlash of the players, other league executives, the fans & the media.  The man has tarnished his legacy by caving in to owners that would love to have a player like Chris Paul on their team.  Dan Gilbert lost LeBron James because he could not get another star player to help carry some of the load with him.  The Cavs made plenty of moves, but never the right move.  Dan Gilbert has been whining ever since.  Complaining that small market teams need more of a chance to keep their superstars.  What Dan doesn't realize that most superstars want a chance to win a title.  Superstars know that they are going to get paid, so the key is finding the best opportunity to win a ring.  Mark Cuban owns the defending champion Mavericks who finally slayed the dragon known as the Lakers by sweeping them in the 2nd round of the playoffs.  So the last thing he wants to see is the Lakers gearing up for another run.  And let's not forget that Mark Cuban has been trying to get Chris Paul for years so don't buy in to his hype like David Stern did.

Stern gives in to disguntled owners demands

After vetoing the trade for "basketball reasons", David Stern has given the league owned New Orleans Hornets permission to seek all trade options as long as they receive youth and draft picks.  So obviously talent for talent is out the question, but by forcing his "Sterned Hand" the only location for Chris Paul to go is Los Angeles.  If the league approves the move to another team, than it will look like Stern placed Chris Paul there.  After the Tim Donaghy incident the last thing Stern wants is bad publicity on league placing superstars where ever the league wants them to go.  And keep in mind that the NBPA has told David Stern and the league that they will not pursue legal action in favor of Chris Paul until Monday to see if an acceptable trade for all parties involved is approved.  So we will see how this story plays out very soon.

Haz Bey