The Los Angeles Lakers failed in attempted trades for Kevin Garnett in 2008 and Chris Paul in 2011. While a deal with the Timberwolves for Garnett couldn’t be worked out, a deal for Paul was struck and vetoed by NBA Commissioner David Stern. Former Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw revealed the true story behind both the deals on Podcast P with Paul George.
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“Kevin Garnett wanted to get out of Minnesota at that time. Everybody was hoping, because at that time, Kobe had switched over to Nike, KG was an Adidas guy. Kobe had started out being Adidas. So, we thought there was a chance KG would want to come and play with Kobe… KG ended up going to Boston and we ended up with Pau, which worked out great. They beat us in ’08. but then we won the championship in 2009 and in 2010, we avenged the loss from 2008.”
Shaw also delved into the Chris Paul trade from 2011 and how David Stern stepped in to protect the interests of small-market teams.
“We had gone through some stuff where we traded for Chris Paul and David Stern stepped in like, ‘Nah, that ain’t happening’… Stern was a gangster. It happened and then it didn’t. What helped him make that not happen was that New Orleans owners at that time were selling the team, but the team was being controlled by the NBA. All the other teams are complaining that the small market teams don’t have a chance because the larger markets always can afford to pay the stars. Lamar was going to end up in Dallas as a part of the trade. Then Stern came in and vetoed the trade.”
Shaw’s recollection of the Odom situation wasn’t accurate, as the initial three-team deal included the Houston Rockets. Chris Paul was going to join the Lakers, Pau Gasol was headed to the Rockets, and Odom, Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, and Goran Dragic were headed to the Hornets. Odom was traded to the Mavericks because he didn’t want to remain a Laker after the trade was vetoed, with Dallas acquiring him for a first-round pick and a trade exception.
Thankfully, Gasol didn’t end up being traded even when the team made a superteam push with Dwight Howard and Steve Nash in 2013. But the fact that they missed on Garnett in 2008 and went on to win two titles is extremely impressive and speaks to the talent of not only Kobe Bryant but also Gasol.
Kevin Garnett And Chris Paul Both Wished They Could Play With Kobe Bryant
Both Garnett and Paul have discussed how a possible team-up with Kobe would have been. Garnett once revealed that he had tried getting in touch with Kobe in 2007 to see if they could team up on the Lakers.
“I wanted to get Kob’s take on whether he thought his Lakers were right for me. I called him. No answer. Called a second time. No answer. Checked my phone to make sure I had the right number: Bean Bryant. Go over the digits carefully. Yes, sir, that’s the number. Let me try this again. Fifth time. Sixth. Before calling the 14th time, I asked my wife, “Should I try him again?” “Yes,” she said. “It’s your future.” I even asked Tyronn Lue, who was close to both of us, to get him to holler at me, but Bean never did. After my 20th time, I figured enough was enough. Only later did I learn that he was in China for a long while. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t getting messages.”
Chris Paul had a deal in place to be Kobe’s teammate before political league forces overruled that deal and sent him to the Clippers later. Paul has also described how it was an opportunity that he and Kobe both wanted.
“Me and Kob was just wired the same. His talent was outrageous but when played against each other, we was about to fight just about every time just because we was both on the same energy… I hate that that opportunity didn’t get to happen because especially at that point in my career, I always knew how good Kobe was even at catch-and-shoot, but he’s never got the chance to show that part of his game. Had we got a chance to play together, I think it could have been fun.”
All worked out for Bryant even with the failed trades, as he ended his career as a five-time champion and one of the greatest to ever play. If Paul joined the Lakers in 2011, there’s a chance we talk about Kobe having won more titles after 2010.
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