‘True Story’: Chris Paul Rejected 2011 Trade to Warriors

Chris Paul confirmed that he nixed a proposed 2011 trade to The Bay Area in exchange for Stephen Curry and Golden State Warriors teammate Klay Thompson.

“I actually never wanted to come out West,” recalls Paul, who was hooping for the then-Charlotte Hornets.

The Dubs’ former general manager, Larry Riley, has refuted that a blockbuster swap for CP3 was ever discussed.

Per NBC Sports Bay Area:

“Yeah, I remember it. True story,” Paul told Maverick Carter and Paul Rivera.

“Yep. that happened with a few teams. I actually never wanted to come out West. I’m born and raised on the East Coast, so I never was crazy about [Los Angeles] and all that until I finally got out here and lived out here. But at that time, all I really knew about The Bay, because I had been there to play the games, and everything was so hilly … “

The deal fell through when Paul said he wouldn’t re-sign with the Warriors, who at the time, were not yet a consistent NBA playoff team.

“First off, that’s false. That never took place,” Riley said on 95.7 The Game on April 17. “And therefore, I think everyone learned something. When you — I had to tell my mother this because she grew up in the days of Walter Cronkite — when you see something on TV or you read it in the newspaper, it’s not necessarily true.”