Rumor: Chris Paul doesn’t plan on taking paycut for Rockets

@DVauthrin speaking nothing but facts

not having CP3 on this roster next season is a clear step back

 

How do you know we can't do a trade with Ryan Anderson involved with another team. You are not Daryl more lol Pretty sure no one thought that Indiana would trade him for Oladipo. Also "Swapping Paul George for CP3 makes all the Rockets role players worse, because he won’t get them easy looks like CP3 did" this is not true. We do not necessarily need cp to run the offense to be a contender and on this point I feel like im talking to a wall. James Harden and the role players did just fine when Paul was out. Our biggest problem in the regular season came when Luc went out because our defense dropped. Also the Rockets in the playoffs didn't miss Paul's playmaking abilityas much as they missed his one one one ability when he went out. The Rockets were beating GSW with their one on one ability again something that PG can do to spell Harden is simply score and pass, he doesn't have to make plays and be elite thats the beauty of MDA's offense. PG one on one with shooters everywhere is what OKC should have been doing but they dont have a good coach. You are confusing OKC Paul George for what he will look like with MDAand Harden. It's not the same. You are doing the same thing people did with Chris Paul last year saying he can't co-exist with Harde. I've seen how harden plays with other all stars IT WILL WORK. Yes Chris is a point gawd but the thing that made the Rockets more successful in the playoffs is his ability to score and take some pressure off Harden. In the playoffs the role players were not hitting their shots anyway you need someone to get to the basket. My overall point is that Chris Paul at max is a bad idea for the Rockets UNLESS Lebron comes. If we give Paul MAX and we don't get Lebron we are screwed. So on this Im just going to agree to disagree. Im not saying Morey won't give him MAX but its a big gamble given his health and I think its a mistake.

 

You may have him on the roster but that doesn't mean he will be playing.

 

What are y’all arguing about ? Paul isn’t going anywhere FFS

 

Chris Paul will miss at least 20 - 30 games next years and depending on the timing of when he gets injured because he gets injured almost every year he may even miss the playoffs, but whatever, lol.

 

Injury is definitely a risk with Chris Paul.

I guess the question is do you want to have a shot at a title and risk it on Chris Paul's injury or have no shot at the title but not have to worry about injury risk.

 

ceiling is higher with CP3 on the team...Paul George is not as good as him, does not have his level of impact on the floor, and does not bring the intangibles like leadership...it’s a clear step back

PG in addition to CP3 being on the roster? Sign me up. PG in place of Point Gawd? Meh.

I don’t trust CP3’s health which is 1 of the main reasons why I feel we need Bron or PG and better not just roll with this same squad plus a few decent additions for next season. We need a Big 3.

 

Paul will be the reason Lebron ends up here if it happens. We will be able to rest throughout the season.. extending Bron’s and Paul’s careers in the process.

 

We will never win a ring with Ariza in a starting role.

 

This is not the point of my post. Im not saying Paul George is better than Chris Paul or that I don't want Lebron. Even without Chris Paul there's no reason for Lebron to stay with the Cavs and Houston is still his best bet. I already stated my point. The Rockets should not resign Paul at MAX. He will miss 20-30 min games next year and we have no idea if that will include playoffs. The Rockets still have options and we almost beat the Warriors this year we don't necessarily need a big three though it would be nice. You guys are thinking of Paul George on OKC not what he will look like next to James Harden.

 

If we get LEGOAT and keep Paul Ariza wont matter. If it's just Harden and Paul we are gonna need more than Ariza maybe Luc will be better next year.

 

Thats just the thing, you are selling us short by saying we don't have a shot without him. There are moves that Morey could make. Harden just needs scoring help we don't necessarily need Chris Paul. The Rockets strongest point was defense against gsw, we mostly missed Paul's scoring in key moments. Gordon disappears every playoffs. Imagine replacing him with someone who doesn't disappear in the playoffs and Paul with someone who doesn't get hurt. (IM NOT SAYING I DON'T WANT CHRIS PAUL HERE OR THAT HE SUCKS BUT WE SHOULD NOT GIVE HIM MAX)

 

Lebron is definitely not coming here with CP3 off the roster. I don’t think Paul George would be enticed to come here without CP3 on the roster either. CP3 is what elevated us to being a 65 win team. CP3 led the league in RPM, his impact on the floor is tremendous. Is giving CP3 a 5 year max a bad idea? Yes, but if that’s what it takes then it is what it is. I definitely think we need a Big 3, and keeping CP3 is by far our best shot at attaining that.

So if we let CP3 go and Paul George just so happens to come here which I doubt, then what? The team is worse than last year.

I’m not thinking of Paul George in OKC, I’m thinking about the type of player Paul George has shown to be throughout the entirety of his career.

 

Cp3 at 33 > PG13. Replace Paul with George and we are not in a game 7 of the WCF next season.

 

Yeah, going back to a team with just one above-average playmaker sounds like a clear path to a title.

 

Ryan Anderson’s salary by itself is not enough to sign and trade Paul George or LeBron for the max. That’s why other pieces like Gordon or a sign and traded Capela have to be included.

Also, all the Rockets role players were getting open threes vs the Warriors because Harden, Paul and Gordon (when Paul didn’t play in games 6 and 7) could break down the defense within the ISO scheme. That’s why Tucker got so many wide open corner threes throughout the series and Ariza had the opportunity to go 0-12 from three in game 7.

CP3 can drive and kick (or shoot the midrange shot efficiently) at will in the Rockets ISO scheme. He’s also a much more willing passer than Paul George. The Rockets’ role players would suffer from not having a second willing passer on the floor. Capela isn’t getting as many lobs, and Tucker, Ariza, Luc and Green aren’t getting as many passes from PG13 as they do from Chris when they are wide open from three. It doesn’t make PG13 a bad player, it makes him a worse basketball fit for the Rockets than Chris Paul. Furthermore, you now say OKC should’ve surrounded Paul George with shooters and let him create for them. George’s career high in assists per game is 4.1. He’s like KD when it comes to creating for others. Not horrible, but nowhere near CP3’s level.

Also, no one is ignoring CP3’s injury risk. It’s a red flag, for sure. But bringing him and the rest of the Rockets free agents back or bringing him back and trading for LeBron or George are the best rosters the Rockets can field next year. And if the Rockets don’t give CP3 the max, someone else will and they don’t have the cap space to sign a comparable free agent. Paying CP3 the max is a risk they simply have to take, especially considering his relationship with LeBron.

Finally, how is it a bad idea to give CP3 the max regardless of whether LeBron comes or not? If Paul doesn’t strain his hamstring in the waning seconds of game 5, the Rockets would’ve beaten the Warriors and advanced to the finals. That’s not a team you break apart. Instead, you add to it.

 

I disagree. If Chris Paul doesn’t strain his hamstring at the end of Game 5, the Rockets advance to the finals and beat the Cavaliers. Also, Ariza played a huge role in the quality of team defense they played against Golden State. Obviously Ariza is a flawed player, but all role players are. Clint Capela was more of a liability against Golden State than Ariza was.

 

How do you propose Morey do that? He’s a great GM, but even he couldn’t work his magic in this scenario. If the Rockets renounce all their free agents, they would not have the cap space to offer a max contract, and the only positive trade assets they would have is Harden, Eric Gordon and future draft picks. You obviously aren’t trading Harden, and Gordon and picks aren’t likely getting you a CP3 caliber player. You also would likely be losing all of Capela, Ariza, Luc by renouncing their rights.

So in this scenario you are losing Chris Paul, Capela and a bunch of key of role players, without the ability to offer other elite free agents a max contract to replace CP3. Not a smart plan.

If the Rockets go after Paul George, it would be as the third star next to Harden and CP3, with a trade involving Eric Gordon and picks, or a sign and traded Capela in a three team deal. That I can get behind. But there’s no other way to get PG13 that makes the Rockets a better team than they were this season.

 

Obviously, you sit back, complain about the other choice, then claim all along you knew all along that you were right.

Sometimes I wonder if some of these people want the Rockets to win if they had to admit that they, like everyone else, don't know what's going to happen.

Just a no brainer fact to throw out, trying to win against Golden State is hard. Is the conventional wisdom in the league to build against them or to rebuild away from them? Aint fooling no one when a person pretends to be smarter than Murray or MDA.

 

I do agree with this, but we do need a more athletic and skilled SF. Ariza would be better off the bench. Luc's injury hurts us here as well.