Chris Paul likely to opt out, return to Phoenix
Chris Paul’s dreams of winning a championship faded away this year, as the Bucks came back from an 0-2 deficit in the NBA Finals to take down Paul and the Phoenix Suns in six games. This may have been CP3’s best chance to potentially win a title, especially since he’s now 36-years-old, but he is not going anywhere this offseason.
The Suns are a young and powerful team in the league that are way ahead of schedule, as seen this year with their remarkable run to the NBA Finals. Getting back there will definitely be difficult, especially in the Western Conference, but the Suns are not going to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Devin Booker is an All-Star-level talent and with DeAndre Ayton, Mikal Bridges and others all growing as young players, there is no reason Chris Paul should leave. Anywhere else he could go in free agency would be a lateral or downward move for him, especially since Phoenix is coming off a season in which they made the NBA Finals!
There is some speculation that Chris Paul will indeed opt out of his $44.2M player option for the 2021-22 season, something pretty much everybody else in the world would opt into, but he is not going to be going anywhere. Re-signing with Phoenix on a new deal is what Paul intends on doing, especially so they can bring back guys like Cameron Payne and potentially Abdel Nader/Torrey Craig in free agency.
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The Knicks have been linked to Paul for months now, especially given his relationship with team president Leon Rose, but this still seems like a fantasy for New York. Chris Paul will be the best player available on the market should he opt out of his contract, but he loves playing for Monty Williams and the Phoenix Suns, which is why we should not expect anything more than him signing a new 2-3 year contract with the Suns.
