Et Tu, CP3?

Situation: a star western conference player is using his agent to lobby for a trade to the New York Knicks.

No, I'm not talking about Carmelo Anthony. Even though he was the lead character of that drama last season, Chris Paul is reprising that role this year, albeit with considerably more talent.

The lockout had only been announced over for several days, and already sources were claiming that Paul wanted a trade to the Knicks. Here's the issue, the Knicks don't have the trade pieces to acquire CP3 directly. In fact, besides Melo, Amare, and the aging Billups, New York doesn't have much to build around.

The Knicks find themselves in this situation because of last season's 'Melodrama'. Carmelo lobbied for a trade to New York for so long that they put together a package the Nuggets just couldn't refuse. All of the young talent the team acquired over several years was gone for a pure scorer. They also gave up three future draft picks and $3 million.

Future teammates? Most likely

So here we are less than a year later, and CP3 is following in the footsteps of his potential future teammate. What bothers me most about all of this is that even if Paul became a Knick, this team still may not be elite.

Paul is probably the best point guard in the league, but that won't help teach Amare and Melo how to play defense. It also ignores the team's need for a true post presence and a cast of capable role players.

Once again, we've got to thank the "Big 3" in Miami for making other star players feel this is the new way to compete. You can't help but feel this situation wouldn't have happened without their initial union.

My gut tells me, Paul will end up in New York eventually, I just hope he has the patience to wait longer than Carmelo did. It'll be better to arrive at a complete team, not one that's in disarray for one your arrival.