Pro Basketball Talk- Kurt Helin: “Since the NBA purchased the New Orleans Hornets, final responsibility for significant management decisions lies with the Commissioner’s Office in consultation with team chairman Jac Sperling. All decisions are made on the basis of what is in the best interests of the Hornets. In the case of the trade proposal that was made to the Hornets for Chris Paul, we decided, free from the influence of other NBA owners, that the team was better served with Chris in a Hornets uniform than by the outcome of the terms of that trade.”
What David Stern and his staff can’t seem to realize is that Paul is going to leave the team no matter what in 2012. Paul will be a free agent and he will join another team, leaving the Hornets with a superstar. If Paul does not get traded before his contract ends, the Hornets will lose one of the best players in the NBA with no return.
If Stern and his staff are so concerned with the Hornets, they would have traded Paul to the Lakers and gotten four capable players back. If the veto is not reversed, the Hornets quickly fall to the bottom of the Western Conference standings.
It’s Stern’s choice, either lose Paul in 2012 or trade him now and get players to fill in the void.