Five hours later, we still have no trade. Developments are emerging here and there, but as for anything concrete? Nope. Not yet.
Let's address the developments. As expected, Houston will be adding the youth to any Chris Paul/Pau Gasol deal with New Orleans and Los Angeles, according to CBS Sports' Ken Berger:
Now appears Lakers will keep Devin Ebanks, and that additional young talent to New Orleans will be coming from the Rockets, sources confirm.
Consider this your new forum for discussion. We're trying to keep things as glitch-free as possible around here, understandably.
As for the deal itself? Wait and see. No reason to rush to judgment just yet, but speculation suggests that Patrick Patterson or Jordan Hill could be involved. I'm cool with Hill leaving, but as I've said before, if Patterson goes, I'll be in limbo.
Again, the youth will come in addition to the players named before (Martin, Scola, Dragic). That's what the reports say, though to be honest, how many reports involving the Rockets have preceded a second report with contrasting, alternate or supplemental information? Again, wait and see.
As for the time delay and additional restructuring? It could be rooted in Houston's interest to clear more cap space in order to sign Nene. Perhaps they're asking the Lakers to take on some extra players, as we all know New Orleans is looking to come out of this with as little money on the books as possible.
To sign Nene, the Rockets will need to overpay. That's just the reality of it. New Jersey will reportedly up their offer to the Brazilian to as much as $70 million over four years. This Gasol deal is far more sweet than sour as long as Nene is on board, so Les Alexander doesn't have much of a choice. He's going to have to give Nene whatever he wants. Thankfully, Dwight Howard wants to go to New Jersey, so perhaps Houston will have less competition.
As for Morey, this is quickly becoming his legacy-cementing deal. How far will Morey go to get his guy? How far is too far?
One thing is for certain: If what we've been told is true, this deal is no longer about Chris Paul. The Rockets are only doing this for Gasol, so it's fair to say that whatever they are giving up is strictly to land Gasol. If people thought David Stern shut this trade down to screw with Paul, that's a null point. Clearly, he's actually attempting to get New Orleans as much out of the deal as possible. And right now, aside from an aging Lamar Odom, it's all coming from Houston.