Could Chris Paul be taking his talents to South Beach this offseason?
According to a new report, the Miami Heat are “expected” to talk with the Houston Rockets about a possible trade that would involve Paul, as well as other available players including P.J. Tucker and Eric Gordon.
“[B]ut not sure there’s an ideal match there,” wrote Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald on Saturday.
Like the Rockets, the Heat are pretty restricted by their salary cap.
If Hassan Whiteside ($27 million) and Goran Dragic ($19.2 million) opt into their deals for 2019-20, the Heat will have no cap space.
Paul is guaranteed nearly $80 million during the next two years with a player option worth $44.2 million in 2021-22. That’s $125 million over the next three years of his contract.
But, Paul could be off the table for Miami, as Rockets general manager recently Daryl Morey shut down those talks on social media.
There could be a chance that the trade would involve Tucker and Gordon. According to Marc Stein of The New York Times, the Rockets are actively looking to trade Tucker, Gordon and Clint Capela.
The Rockets are indeed shopping everyone on the roster not named Harden. The complexities involved in moving Chris Paul, who at age 34 has three years and nearly $125 million left on his contract, have Houston officials actively exploring the trade market for Clint Capela, Eric Gordon and P.J. Tucker.
As one source with knowledge of the team’s thinking said, they are operating under the belief that at least one of those three mainstays will not be a Rocket next season.
What trade between the Rockets and the Heat make the most sense to you?
