Keeping tabs on the players the Rockets traded to LA in the Chris Paul deal

Approaching the anniversary of the Chris Paul sign-and-trade deal, there’s an opportunity to check in on Patrick Beverley and the rest of the players that Houston sent to LA in the trade. Think of it as an episode of “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” if “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” was a lot better and about basketball players.

June 28 will mark one year since Houston acquired star point guard Chris Paul in a sign-and-trade with the Los Angeles Clippers. As the Rockets recorded a record-breaking season with Paul and James Harden at the helm, the pieces Houston sent to acquire the nine-time All-Star were undergoing their own exploits.

Patrick Beverley

Patrick Beverley was probably the only asset that Rockets fans were truly upset to give up. The 6’1″ point guard spent five seasons in Houston, displaying an unparalleled level of defensive aggressiveness that made him a fan favorite and eventually earned him an All-Defensive First Team selection in 2017.

His career with the Clippers has been brief so far; cut short by a knee surgery that sidelined him for the majority of this past season. He only appeared in eleven games, averaging 12.2 points, 2.9 assists, and 1.6 steals in that small sample size.

But Beverley still managed to create some memorable moments the few games he played; most memorably the friendly welcome into the NBA that he extended to rookie Lonzo Ball on opening night.

His future

Beverley was given an expected recovery time of nine months after his surgery but was cleared for all basketball activities earlier this month, three months ahead of schedule. It’s not at all surprising to anyone who knows of Beverley that he’d not let a knee surgery keep him down too long.

The Clippers have a team option on the final year of Beverley’s contract, and the guard is also eligible for an extension, should the team opt to keep him around.

Wherever he ends up this offseason (Houston), the fans (in Houston) will without a doubt love watching him torment his match-up night after night while being the motor that drives his team (the Rockets).

And on a quick and non-basketball related note, his mother, Lisa Beverley, won the showcase on “The Price is Right” last month.

Moms won price is right!!! Is litttt!!!! Let me hold one of those cars mama!!!!

— Patrick Beverley (@patbev21) May 2, 2018

Sam Dekker

Sam Dekker, another player that Houston shipped out in exchange for Paul last June, was taken by the Rockets with the 18th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft. He was still developing during his time in Houston and found mostly limited minutes on a team vying for a championship.

He is very much still a developing player with LA, and his minutes-per-game mark saw a decrease this year from 18.4 in his last year with Houston to 12.1 with the Clippers, who are fairly deep at the forward slots.

On the positive side of things, Dekker has not, to my knowledge, hit himself in the face with the basketball while on a fastbreak this year, bringing his BHFPG (Ball Hits to the Face Per Game) down from 1.0 to 0.0 (stat via myself).

Dekker has the potential to provide competent floor spacing and offensive production for his team once he develops a bit more and adds some polish to his game.

Montrezl Harrell

Montrezl Harrell, taken with the Rocket’s 32nd overall pick in the same draft as Dekker and also a part of the Paul trade, has continued to shape into a solid NBA big in his time with Los Angelas.

Though his counting stats didn’t improve much in his third year in the league, they also didn’t drop off at all, which is impressive considering he was transitioning on to a new team that was also in its own state of transition.

Harrell averaged 11.0 points, 4,0 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 17.0 minutes per game across 76 games.

Lou Williams

Lou Williams is the only other player that Houston shipped in the trade that had played meaningful minutes for the team. The Lakers traded him at the previous deadline and ironically sent back to LA during the off-season.

Irony or no irony, Williams played his role well for the Clippers, leading the team in scoring with 22.4 points per game on a 43.5% shooting clip. The team rewarded his play with a 3-year, $24 million dollar extension that may finally keep him in one place for a while after being a journeyman for the last several years of his career.

Next: Summer League Rockets include several recognizable names

So for any fans that still miss the players that were sacrificed for the greater good of championship contention, there’s at least some consolation in the players being in positive situations, and in the fact that their moms are winning game shows.