The NBA, owners of the New Orleans Hornets, refused Thursday to approve a three-team trade that would have sent Hornets All-Star guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers.
“It’s not true that the owners killed the deal, the deal was never discussed at the Board of Governors meeting and the league office declined to make the trade for basketball reasons,” league spokesman Mike Bass said.
Yahoo Sports reported that NBA commissioner David Stern killed the trade after several owners complained. Citing anonymous sources, Yahoo reported Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was one of the most vocal owners upset about the deal, done the same day as the end of the lockout, which was supposed to restore competitive balance in the league.
The proposed deal would have sent Lamar Odom from the Lakers to New Orleans and four-time All-Star Pau Gasol from the Lakers to Houston.
After it fell through, Paul simply wrote, “WoW,” on his Twitter page.
The Houston Rockets were the third team in the trade and would have obtained Gasol from the Hornets in return for Luis Scola, Kevin Martin, Goran Dragic and a 2012 first-round pick that Houston received from the New York Knicks.
Paul can opt out of his current contract with New Orleans after this season, and the Hornets have been fielding trade offers in an effort to acquire new players for the star guard rather than letting him walk in free agency.
The NBA’s decision sets up an awkward start of training camps today for the teams involved in the deal.
Odom, too, took to Twitter to share his feelings: “When a team trades u and it doesn’t go down? Now what?”
CBA RATIFIED
Owners and players ratified the new collective bargaining agreement, the final step to ending the five-month lockout and paving the way for training camps and free agency to open today.
The 10-year deal, allowing either side to opt out after six, promises owners savings of perhaps a quarter billion dollars a year, but largely leaves intact the soft salary cap system that the players fought hard to maintain.
SLAM DUNKS
Center Greg Oden’s agent says the often-injured former No. 1 draft pick will sign the Trail Blazers’ $8.9 million qualifying offer today. … A person familiar with the situation said free agent Caron Butler is leaving the Mavericks to sign with the Clippers for a reported $24 million over three years. Butler averaged 15 points per game last season for Dallas before rupturing a tendon in his right knee. … Free agent forward Shane Battier announced in a series of Twitter posts that he will sign with the Heat. The 33-year-old is entering his 10th NBA season, having previously played for the Grizzlies and Rockets. … The Celtics have a deal in place to acquire veteran guard Keyon Dooling in a trade with the Bucks, Dooling’s agent said. Dooling started 22 games last season, averaging 7.1 points and three assists. The Bucks are expected to receive a second-round pick in return.
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