The Los Angeles Clippers have agreed to trade point guard Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical:
After Chris Paul agreed to opt-in on contract, Clippers are trading All-Star guard to the Houston Rockets, league sources tell @TheVertical
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 28, 2017
Sources: After Paul informed Clippers he'd sign w/ HOU in FA, teams agreed to deal sending Beverley, Decker, Williams and 2018 FRP for Paul. https://t.co/9Lk9FPEPbu
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 28, 2017
Chris Paul and James Harden were determined to play together, and found a way with Rockets-Clippers trade agreed upon today.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 28, 2017
Source: Terms of Clippers-Rockets deal: For @CP3, Houston sends Williams, Beverley, Dekker, Liggins, Hilliard, Harrell, Wiltjer, FRP + $661K
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) June 28, 2017
Paul had previously told the Clippers that he planned to decline his player option for next season, which would have made him an unrestricted free agent. However, this trade involves him picking up that player option, meaning he will be a free agent after the 2017-18 season unless he signs an extension with the Rockets.
The Spurs were previously thought of as the favorite to steal Paul away from the Clippers in free agency, but his interest in the Rockets put Houston in front yesterday.
Paul averaged 18.1 points, 9.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game last season.
Connect With Chat Sports:
Chat Sports on Pinterest
Chat Sports on Slide Share
Chat Sports on Twitter
By giving up these assets to land Paul, Houston's pursuit of a trade for Paul George will likely come to an end. The Rockets will now look to free agency to add a third star to their team and are targeting Blake Griffin and Paul Millsap on the open market.
Paul's departure from Los Angeles also likely means that Griffin, an unrestricted free agent after opting out of his contract, will sign elsewhere. The Oklahoma City Thunder, Miami Heat and Boston Celtics are all known to be interested.
Los Angeles has been looking into trading DeAndre Jordan, meaning that none of the Clippers' Big 3 could be on their roster next season as they start what appears to be a total rebuild.
Follow our Houston Rockets news page for all the latest Rockets news!
Back to the Houston Rockets Newsfeed