Chris Paul is now headed to the Washington Wizards as part of the blockbuster Bradley Beal trade deal that will see the three-time All-Star take his talents to the Phoenix Suns. Nevertheless, this hasn't stopped the Los Angeles Lakers from pursuing CP3. In fact, LA may have taken a step closer toward finally bringing Paul to Hollywood now that reports have emerged of Washington's plans to reroute the veteran point guard in another trade.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, Chris Paul still figures significantly in the Lakers' offseason plans. Renewing the contracts of Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura remains to be priority No. 1 for LA, and apparently, so does signing CP3 via NBA free agency:

“The Lakers’ current Plan A, which calls for re-signing free agents Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura and trying to sign Chris Paul as a free agent should Paul make it to the open market in the wake of his inclusion in the Beal-to-Phoenix trade,” Stein wrote.

The big caveat here for the Lakers, however, is if the Wizards will actually waive Paul's contract and allow him to enter free agency. Other reports indicate that the Los Angeles Clippers could get involved as well by either trading for Paul directly from the Wizards or potentially becoming a third team in the Bradley Beal deal between Washington and Phoenix.

Whatever the case might be, it appears that the Lakers will do everything they can to get their hands on Chris Paul. At this point, however, it might be out of their control.