You probably woke up to the news that Chris Paul was sent home overnight by the Clippers.  However the wording by everyone involved was strategically vague because he wasn’t actually waived and it won’t be that simple for LA to do so at the moment.

** That’s because the Clippers have to maintain 14 players on their roster, releasing CP3 outright would put them at 13 and they would have 2 weeks to backfill his spot.  The problem is that CP3’s salary is fully guaranteed so waiving him doesn’t give them enough space under the 1st Apron to sign anyone else.  They will either just let him sit until his salary gets paid and prorated or their other option is to trade him.

But who is gonna trade for Chris Paul??  He wanted to end his career as a Clipper, so it’s likely that he wouldn’t go to another team and instead just retire.  Another scenario for them right now would be to work a bigger trade that they could include CP3 in as a salary dump and have that team waive him, or use him if he did decide to play.

So how does this affect the Pacers?  Well coincidentally there just so happened to have been recent chatter regarding the possibility of Center Ivica Zubac being a trade asset for the Clippers and Indiana showed up on a list of potential landing spots for him. 

Zubac is not a Stretch Big but he’s only 28 and can get points in the paint, works well in the pick and roll and brings defense and rebounding that we sorely need right now.  And if you throw in Chris Paul in a trade, the Clippers just might be eager enough to do a deal that dumps his contract and gets them back young assets plus a draft pick or two which they are in desperate need of.

I was just poking around the Trade Machines, something like Zubac and Paul for IJax, Bradley, Shepp and Pick(s) actually works financially but can’t be completed until 12/15.  Just a framework to contemplate but feel free to run your own simulations.

I’m not saying that this is a Must Do, but it could be an opportunity to snag a solid Big without giving up any of our blue chip pieces or too many draft picks.

** Cap info is from Trevor Lane of the NBA Front Office Show with Keith Smith.

20 comments

  1. It took me until the 4th paragraph to realize you weren’t trying to say we should get Chris Paul as our center.

  3. Would have to rework the salary matching to keep Indy out of the tax this year, though. Yeah, it’s a legal trade, but Indy would likely have to include Obi to make a deal and stay under the tax line? Those hardships we’ve signed have added up as dead salary on the cap 😂

  4. CP3 ≠ Center Position stretch 3. Jk

    Yeah I get your point and could see something like that being a really solid trade for us. Honestly it all comes down to whatever the hell the clippers are doing, which I don’t think anyone knows. They are in a terrible position that is staring down the barrel of a long rebuild as they don’t have but 4 draft picks left this decade or many players they can trade for draft capital. I feel like they are more incentivized to ride with what they have and hope, than to blow it up and hope to have a shot in 2031

  6. I thought this was the most elaborate shit post advocating an aging CP3 as our future center. I get it now though. 

  10. ROFL. Bad for the Clippers, and bad for us. We do not sorely need a center. We need to be competitive without winning games. Winning right now is not good for the franchise.

  12. I wouldn’t want the Pacers to push in with a bunch of picks, but Zubac would be one I’d like to see the Pacers go after aggressively. I’m not interested in the bandaid options others have pushed, marginal upgrades (maybe), who might help Indiana eeeck out a couple of more wins but not good enough to anchor a title contending team.

    It’s doubtful the Clippers would trade Zubac without getting a young piece back, such as Mathurin.

    One thing we know with Zubac, Turner can’t guard him.

  15. Clipper don’t give him up for pennies like that. It would take Benn or Walker. He is also a bad fit for the team.

  16. Pritchard burner account looking for validation of his “throwing stuff at the wall to see what sticks” idea?

  17. It’s highly unfortunate that the Clippers pick to the Thunder is unprotected. That’s all I can think about whenever there’s any Clippers news.

  18. I’m trying to envision Tyrese Haliburton working the PnR with Ivica Zubac. I’m not there yet.

  19. Let’s get Zubac and, if not convince CP3 to play, at least get him sitting on the bench JJ style and imparting wisdom.

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