Los Angeles (AFP)
Point guard Chris Paul was transferred from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Phoenix Suns, in exchange for Spain point guard Ricky Rubio, winger Kelly Oubre Jr, two other players and a first round draft, ESPN reported on Monday and The Athletic.
If confirmed, this is the first major movement of this offseason, while the NBA has authorized franchises since Monday to make movements in the context of player exchanges.
For Phoenix, Paul, 35, and the Egyptian winger also included in the agreement, are therefore worth five OKC players: Ricky Rubio and Kelly Oubre, but also the young back Ty Jerome and point guard Jalen Lecque little used last season. , not to mention their future first draft pick.
The 35-year-old star, selected ten times for the All-Star Game and who was part of the second best five of last season (17.6 points, 6.7 assists, 5 rebounds on average), will bring his talent intact and his experience especially in a team which has in its ranks the nugget Devin Booker.
The goal will be to allow the Suns to find play-offs that have eluded them since 2010. In the Disney World bubble, this summer, Phoenix was very close to qualifying after winning all eight games at the end of the regular season, showing very interesting potential
For the Thunder, it's a reconstruction that starts with Ricky Rubio (13 pts, 8.8 assists) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (18.7 pts) who will have to find the right chemistry with the Canadian back Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, author of a past season full of promises (19 pts, 5.8 rebounds).
And it's not over yet, since according to US media, OKC has also reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Lakers to exchange their German point guard Dennis Schröder for veteran winger Danny Green.
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