Sir Charles in Charge
Fansided

NBA: Chris Paul-To-Lakers Trade Veto Still A Mystery

By Zach Blochlinger

April 12, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) controls the ball against Memphis Grizzlies guard Jordan Farmar (4) during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
April 12, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) controls the ball against Memphis Grizzlies guard Jordan Farmar (4) during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 8
Next

Consider Lamar Odom

Odom was a 12 year vet. In his entire career, he had only played in Los Angeles up to this point, first with the Clippers, then with the Lakers. He was devastated by the news of potentially being traded to New Orleans and never really got over it. This led to his trade to the Dallas Mavericks December 12th, 2011, just four days after the Stern veto.

Shortly after hearing the news, Odom tweeted:

“When a team trades you and it doesn’t go down? Now what?”

Not a big deal?

Odom scored a career average of 14.6 points per game over those first twelve seasons and had never had a season with less than 10.8 PPG before the veto. After the veto, he never scored over 6.6 PPG over a season again.

He retired just two years later after playing with the Mavs, then again with the Clippers. Kobe Bryant was publicly critical of the trade, which makes the multiple attempts at moving Odom very surprising.