Chris Paul talks about 2011 Warriors-Hornets trade that never happened

On Monday night (Tuesday IST), Oklahoma City Thunder's point guard Chris Paul appeared as a guest on Uninterrupted's WRTS podcast. On the podcast, Paul was asked about a 'potential' trade between the Charlotte Hornets and the Golden State Warriors in 2011. Chris Paul, who was talking to Maverick Carter and Paul Rivera, stated that he definitely remembered the story. 

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Chris Paul on the 2011 Chris Paul Warriors trade

Chris Paul Warriors trade is a 'true story', says CP3

When asked about the trade and his hesitance to comment, Chris Paul said it is a 'true story'. Paul revealed that 2011 trade happened 'with a few teams'. Paul never wanted to come to the West as he was born and raised on the East Coast. He added that he was never 'crazy' about Los Angeles and 'all that' till he actually started living there. At the time, he had only been there to play a few games and thought everything was 'hilly'. 

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The talk about the dead 2011 trade started due to a story in Ethan Strauss' book The Victory Machine. In the book, he wrote about the Warriors almost traded the Splash Brothers – Steph Curry and Klay Thompson – to the Hornets for Paul in 2011. However, the deal reportedly fell through after Paul refused to commit and re-sign with the Warriors. At the time, the GSW were not a playoffs deserving team.

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Was the Chris Paul Warriors trade really discussed?

On April 17, the Warriors former general manager Larry Riley denied the story completely. He stated that it's 'false' and the trade discussions never happened. He added that everyone has learned something new and everything that is seen on TV and the newspaper reported the story wrongly.

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