If you have been in a cave for the last few days, the Lakers made a major play to get Chris Paul from the New Orleans Hornets. They basically were going to give away their entire front court for him. In the meanwhile, NO actually seems to get the better of the deal player-wise (Lakers forward Lamar Odom, Rockets guards Kevin Martin and Goran Dragic and forward Luis Scola) which would be quite a team. Don't forget the Houston Rockets who get Pau Gasol out of this.

I don't think that the Lakers benefit from this move. The only way it works out is if they are able to get Dwight Howard or one of the other few top-top centers in the league. They are putting a lot of eggs in one basket just to match Paul with Howard one day (Yes, I know Kobe Bryant is still around, but this is a move for the post-Kobe era). It certainly doesn't make them my favorite to win anything until they address the front court (all they have left over is Andrew Bynum who's knees are reminding me of what is happening to Brandon Roy).

But this wasn't about winning championships! Gilbert Brown didn't buy the Cavs thinking he really had a chance to win anything until LeBron came along. This is about money, just like the new CBA. If all the superstars go to all the large market teams, then the small market teams will have no draw for fans nor large TV contracts, etc. That means that there is less revenue to share.

New Orleans would be a lot better after this trade. A lot of guys who are unselfish, who can score and play as a team. Think about if the Warriors had all those pieces? We would be juiced. But in the end, this was not about Wins and Loses, it was about money and the owners whining away once again about how they can't maintain their riches.

While everyone thinks that LA got screwed in this deal, I think the opposite, they got saved. Just like the rest of the owners. The league office is always looking out for their own...