Looks like the New York Knicks never-ending search for a game-changing point guard will continue. Chris Paul spoke with Bossip at last week’s Essence Festival in New Orleans and said definitively that he has no plans to join the Knicks.
Paul: “I think we’re all just focused on trying to get on the court and an opportunity to play being in this lockout situation. And then when we resume play, I’m trying to win a championship here in New Orleans.
Reporter: “So that’s a no, you’re not going to New York? Or that’s a maybe? Or…?
Paul: “We’re trying to get through this lockout and stuff like that and I won’t be in New York no time soon. I’m here in New Orleans.”
That’s a very different song than the one Paul sang last summer when he put together a list of teams he’d like to be traded to…with the Knicks at the top of the list. Since then things haven’t gotten any better in New Orleans. They were bounced in the first round by the Lakers and could very well lose David West in free agency, leaving a big hole in the middle of the lineup. Considering Paul can opt out of his contract after next season, it’s a mystery why he isn’t talking about exploring his options, although his loyalty to the franchise that drafted him is refreshing.
Then again, the cynic in me says it wouldn’t be the first time an athlete said one thing then later did another.