Miami Heat: Is Chris Paul really what’s next for the Heat?

Now that Russell Westbrook has found a new home in Houston, the next name on the list for the Miami Heat seems to be Chris Paul.

Well, our time at the wall is over. Our Night’s watch has finished. Or has it? Thursday night ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Oklahoma City Thunder traded Russell Westbrook to the Houston Rockets for Chris Paul, rather than the Miami Heat.

When I heard the news, I was shocked like everyone else, but I was also heartbroken. I thought that this would be the summer where the Heat became relevant again. Sure, Westbrook and Jimmy Butler weren’t the perfect match on paper, but I assumed they would work hard and do everything they could to make it work.

If they reached even 50 percent of their potential as a tandem, they could be the best duo in the east. Couple that with head coach Erik Spoelstra and president Pat Riley and you’ve really got a real chance to hang with the upper echelon teams in the conference.

Not only did Heat Nation not get the enigmatic superstar that is Russell Westbrook, but It also looks like there could be a deal made between the Thunder and the Heat surrounding Chris Paul according to Sam Amick of The Athletic.

This certainly feels like the Miami Heat are skipping over second place and going straight for third place in this whole scenario. They had a shot at an all-NBA performing with an MVP trophy and a knack for triple-doubles. What they may be getting instead is a star player who’s already showing signs of being past his prime with three years and $124 million left on his fully guaranteed contract.

What’s the constant through both the Los Angeles Clippers’ dumpster fire the last few seasons and the Rockets turmoils? Chris Paul. He’s a hard-headed point guard who causes friction with his teammates. People thought Westbrook and Butler would have a falling out if they joined up, but I expect if Paul comes to Miami, that he and Butler won’t see eye to eye. Most players in the league applaud Paul’s grit and effort but most likely don’t wish to be paired with him.

Well, how did this happen? How did we get here after the Miami Heat being the favorites for a few days to land Westbrook? A few days ago I wrote about two deals the Heat could do to acquire his services, and it turns out that OKC’s Sam Presti asked for the first deal verbatim according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

The Thunder also wanted two out of three young assets of Bam Adebayo, Justise Winslow, and newly signed rookie Tyler Herro. Not only did they want that, but they also wanted Miami to take on the contract of Andre Roberson who hasn’t played since January of 2018. Hindsight says Riley signaled he was done negotiating by signing Herro to his rookie contract since he couldn’t be traded for 30 days after signing.

So here we are waiting once again to see if a star player is coming to join Jimmy Butler this season. I was excited to welcome Russell Westbrook, but those dreams are dashed. Please Pat Riley, if you’re reading this, don’t trade for Chris Paul. I believe he’s been cancerous everywhere he’s been due to his aggressive nature with everyone, including teammates.

Players will tell you they want someone like him on their team until after you make it through the growing pains of growing accustomed to him just for him to go drown with a leg or hand injury when you need him most, late in the regular season and playoffs. This man should be an NBA champion already in 2018, but he missed Game 7 of the Western Conferece Finals against Golden State which ended up being a very winnable game of historic magnitude.

The Rockets missed a record-setting 27 3-point attempts and could’ve really used their point guard to orchestrate a bucket for ten in crunch time. Clearly, James Harden wasn’t up for the task.

The only way I’d want the Miami Heat to acquire Chris Paul is if the Thunder buy him out (which is a virtual impossibility and stretching his contract would violate the  terms of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement anyway) and he signs a short-term deal for less money with Miami after they execute a trade for Goran Dragic that will provide salary cap relief.

I’m not going to hold my breath on that one, but a man can dream, right? Who knows what’ll happen in this wacky league of ours but for now, we wait.

“Night gathers, and now my watch begins.”
-The Brothers of The Night’s Watch