Should the Sixers be interested in Chris Paul?
After coming just one game away from helping the Houston Rockets reach the NBA Finals two years ago, Chris Paul now finds himself likely heading to his third new team in the last three years. The future Hall of Famer is sitting in a sort of purgatory with the Oklahoma City Thunder for the time being. It’s clear that he isn’t long for a team as bad as the Thunder, but the timing of his arrival in OKC makes it difficult for another team to acquire him. Paul will start the year with the Thunder, but after that, he’ll be one of the most sought after players on the trade market.
Should the Sixers be among the teams interested in the nine-time All Star?
Hypothetically, he’d be a good fit. The Sixers are short on guards and Paul is still among the league’s best. He’d add great floor spacing along Ben Simmons and serve as an excellent floor general for the second unit. He isn’t the scoring threat he once was, but his defense and passing are still elite and would add a lethal dimension to the Sixers’ lineup.
Ok. Now that that’s out of the way, here’s why the Sixers shouldn’t trade for Chris Paul:
- He’s old. Paul turned 34 in May.
- He’s injury prone. Paul’s missed 48 games over the past two seasons and has only played a full season once.
- He’s expensive. Paul’s making about $40 mil each of the next three seasons.
- He’s grumpy. Paul’s famous for butting heads with his teammates and was just shipped out of Houston for the very thing.
- Ya gotta give to get. In order to acquire a player of Paul’s contract and stature, they’d have to give up some major trade assets; something the Sixers are in very short supply of.
Trading for Chris Paul would be extremely ill advised and disrupt the core that the Sixers set in place this offseason. The team would be admitting they didn’t add enough in the offseason and they were still a piece away. It’d be an all around bad look.
Of course, later down the line, if injuries begin to occur, this trade could be a little bit more logical and may be worth in, but for now, for the love of God, the Sixers shouldn’t trade for Chris Paul.
