The Clippers have an “advantage” over the Lakers if the Wizards give up CP3 after the trade

Looks like Chris Paul is ready to take care of his unfinished business in Los Angeles.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said Paul would prefer to play next season in Los Angeles after being dealt with by the Phoenix Suns and would be more inclined to sign with the Clippers than the Lakers if he reaches a buyout deal with the Washington Wizards.

It is possible that Chris Paul will be redirected as part of this [Bradley Beal] The trade, though I think Chris Paul’s position really was that if he’s not in the Phoenix Sun this year, he’d like to play in LA with his family,” Windhorst said Monday. I wake up. And so I think in the end whether it’s a buyout or a different deal, I think we’ll see Chris Paul become a free agent in the coming days and then focus on the options in LA.

Now, the Lakers and Clippers both have free agent positions at their point guard, technically both positions are open. I know that possibility since Chris Paul’s name has been on the market in the past few weeks where there has been some sort of assumption that the Lakers will be Option. That’s not what I’ve been told. I’ve been told the Clippers have a real opportunity there. There might be some mutual interest between Chris Paul and the Clippers if he really does become a free agent around July 1. So, stay tuned.

“Remember, Chris Paul played with the Clippers for many years. He left there on good terms, generally, because he worked them out on a deal. And I wouldn’t rule out the Clippers. In fact, based on my conversations, I would have an advantage if he really became a free agent and if he tried,” says the Clippers. Clippers and Lakers get it.”

Paul and Landry Schmidt are set to be traded to the Wizards as part of a deal that sends Bell to Phoenix, but the deal has not been finalized as Washington looks to find a third team to take on a future Hall of Famer, according to ESPN’s Adrian Vojnarowski.

If the Wizards can’t find a taker, they will almost certainly negotiate the purchase of Paul on a $30.8 million salary and allow him to become a free agent.

Paul, 38, spent six seasons with the Clippers from 2011 to 2017, earning All-NBA honors and an All-Star selection in five of his six years with the franchise.

Taking the Clippers franchise to unprecedented heights, Paul was instead the star of an era that saw the team consistently fall short of playoff expectations. The Clippers traded Paul to the Houston Rockets in the summer of 2017 in a mutual parting ways that ultimately paved the way for the current era of Clippers basketball.

Choosing between the Lakers and Clippers would be a complete moment for Paul, who was famously traded to the Lakers in 2011 before then-Commissioner David Stern vetoed the deal. Paul was then later traded to the Clippers at a crossroads moment for both franchises.

Athletic Jovan Poha reported that the Lakers would have a “strong interest” in adding Paul if he were to reach a buyout.

Twelve years later, this is a completely different Paul and a completely different situation for both franchises. The Lakers boast Paul’s longtime buddies LeBron James and Anthony Davis, along with an improved support staff that just made it to the Western Conference Finals. The Clippers have a pair of superstars in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, but they haven’t been able to find success in the postseason due to the All-Stars’ injury issues.

Paul will be a missing piece and a solid fit either way. If it comes to a free agency decision, Paul’s next destination will be determined by whether he wants to go down the familiar path or forge a new path with James and the Lakers.