Earlier this offseason, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said there was a 100 percent guarantee Chris Paul would return next season.
The Rockets, of course, wound up trading Paul to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the blockbuster Russell Westbrook trade.
Morey says he probably should have put Paul's return to Houston at 99.9 percent instead of 100 percent.
If All-Star small forward Paul George didn't request a trade from the Thunder, he and Russell Westbrook are probably running it back in OKC next season, while Chris Paul is still on the Rockets. No one saw the George trade happening.
After PG was sent to the Los Angeles Clippers, everyone in the league knew Westbrook was going to be traded next. That's when the Rockets likely changed their stance on Paul, as they knew they had to do whatever it took to get Westbrook in Houston next to James Harden.
Both Paul and Westbrook have a lot of money owed to them over the next few seasons. Westbrook, though, is still a superstar who has averaged a triple-double three seasons in a row. Paul, while he's still an effective player, is no longer an All-Star-caliber player due to his age and diminishing speed.
In the end, the Rockets made the right move by parting ways with Paul to acquire Westbrook.
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