Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey 'will consider trading' Chris Paul
Thursday 30 May 2019 06:23, UK
Rockets general manager Daryl Morey wants to rebuild the roster in Houston and will even consider trading All-Star point guard Chris Paul, according to reports on Wednesday.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported the Rockets are being aggressive in the ramp up to the offseason with conversations surrounding all players on their own roster.
While MVP candidate James Harden is not thought to be available, a blowup between Harden and Paul following the season-ending loss to the Golden State Warriors could contribute to a split this summer.
Paul is among LeBron James' best friends, and the Los Angeles Lakers own the No 4 pick in the draft among other tradeable assets.
Drafted fourth overall in 2005, Paul turned 34 on May 6 and is signed for the next three seasons. Paul is owed $38.5m for 2019-20 before making $41.4m in 2020-21 and $44.2m in the final year of the deal.
However, moving Paul for anything more than a ready-made replacement would seem to work against the expected goal of the front office to improve the roster around Harden.
Owner Tilman Fertitta said at a season-ending press conference the charge for the front office was made clear.
"I've directed my people to get better next year - anything we can do, from ownership to conditioning and training, all the way to that level. If we can make our team better player-wise, we're going to make our team better. If we can make our team better coaching-wise, we'll make our team better," Fertitta said.
