(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
During his playing career in the NBA up to this point, future Hall of Famer Chris Paul has been traded six times and has made a considerable impact on each team that he’s been traded to.
Even though Paul has been traded over and over again, he has some of the best “what-ifs” in NBA history, as he could’ve been traded to the Los Angeles Lakers to join forces with Kobe Bryant, which was vetoed by the league, and apparently could’ve been dealt to the Miami Heat to play alongside Dwyane Wade.
After an epic collapse by the star-studded Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals, when Miami lost to Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks, the team considered bringing in Paul, but the rumor is he wouldn’t give up his No. 3 jersey, nor would Wade.
However, former NBA star Gilbert Arenas claims the rumor is wrong, as he says that it was LeBron James that the Heat wanted to trade in exchange for Paul, as he said on the “Nightcap” podcast with Shannon Sharpe, via NBACentral.
Gilbert Arenas says the Heat considered trading LeBron James for Chris Paul after the 2011 Finals
( @NightcapShow_ )
pic.twitter.com/YWLARG6RGM
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 29, 2024
Obviously, this is quite the development if true, as James was in his prime at this time with the Heat and still had yet to win his first title in the league.
Even though the Heat’s collapse in this series with the Mavericks can directly be attributed to James’ play, it’s hard to imagine the team giving up on him so soon, especially considering the team went on to win back-to-back titles while also appearing in the NBA Finals in four straight seasons.
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