Photo: LA Clippers/YouTube

Chris Paul still thinks about the trade that nearly sent him to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2011, but the future Hall of Fame point guard believes his career unfolded the way it was supposed to.

Speaking on The Late Run Show, Paul discussed the NBA’s decision to block the proposed trade that would have sent him from the New Orleans Hornets to the Lakers. The deal was vetoed when the league owned the Hornets after former owner George Shinn sold the team to the NBA in 2010.

“I was traded there for a few hours,” Paul said. “My team at the time was owned by the league, the owner at the time had lost the team financially, so the NBA owned the team. So when the trade went through, I guess all the other owners, because they sort of had ownership in the team, got a chance to say hell no. They couldn’t let that happen.”

The proposed three-team trade would have sent Paul to Los Angeles alongside Kobe Bryant, potentially creating one of the NBA’s most talented backcourts. Instead, the league rejected the deal, and Paul was eventually traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, where he helped transform the franchise.

Paul acknowledged that he has wondered what his career might have looked like alongside Bryant and the Lakers, but he does not view the failed move negatively.

“I’ve thought about it plenty of times, but I’m also a firm believer that everything happens for a reason,” Paul said.

The Clippers trade became a defining moment in Paul’s career. In his first season with Los Angeles in 2011-12, he averaged 19.8 points, 9.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game while earning All-NBA First Team and All-Defensive First Team honors.

Paul spent six seasons with the Clippers, making the playoffs every year and becoming one of the league’s elite point guards. From 2011-12 through 2016-17, he averaged 18.9 points, 10.0 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 steals while earning six All-Star selections during that span.

The 12-time All-Star went on to play for the Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs before returning to Los Angeles with the Clippers during the 2025-26 season.

By the time Paul reached the later stages of his career, his role changed from primary scorer to veteran facilitator. In the 2024-25 season with San Antonio, at age 39, he played all 82 games and averaged 8.8 points and 7.4 assists while helping develop younger players.

Paul’s career numbers reflect his consistency over two decades. Across 1,370 games, he has averaged 16.8 points, 9.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game while shooting 46.9% from the field and 37.0% from three-point range.

Although the Lakers opportunity remains one of the biggest “what ifs” of his career, Paul’s path still produced a Hall of Fame résumé. The point guard became one of the most influential floor generals of his generation, with the Clippers era becoming a central part of his legacy.