Much like the rest of the NBA community, Isiah Thomas heard what Chris Paul had to say about his offseason moves, too.
When appearing on “Sway In The Morning” last week, the NBA legend, 62, was asked by host Sway Calloway about recent comments made by Paul, who previously alluded that Thomas was part of the decision-making process behind his trade from the Suns to the Wizards.
“I’m going to speak to Chris when I see him,” Thomas replied. “What he dropped, you know, nationally, I’ll speak to him when I see him.”
It’s been a dizzying few weeks for Paul, who was originally part of a package Phoenix sent to Washington for star guard Bradley Beal.
Paul, 38, was then traded to the Warriors ahead of the 2023 NBA Draft last month.
The 12-time NBA All-Star spoke about the initial Suns-Wizards trade in a recent interview with The New York Times, where he insinuated Thomas was pulling some puppet strings.
“It’s just — it’s tough. Seriously, it is part of the business, and what you realize is that no one owes you anything,” said Paul, who learned of the trade while on a plane bound for New York.
“No matter how you are with them or what you do, you realize that in this business, nobody owes you anything, as it should be.
“But when [the trade] comes through and my son texts me, I realize that, you know, [Suns owner] Mat [Ishbia] and Isiah, I guess, just wanted to go in a different direction.”
Thomas and Ishbia are said to be good friends and have reportedly had interactions outside of basketball endeavors.
Although the Hall of Fame point guard does not hold a role in the Suns’ front office, he has experience at the executive level.
He previously served as executive vice president of the Raptors and president of the Knicks.
Thomas has been critical of Paul and his play style in the past, previously remarking how he’s a “safe player.”
Both point guards were members of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team and often have been compared historically as to who is the best small guard of all time.
