Despite being a 12 time All-Star and almost certainly a 1st ballot Hall of Famer, Chris Paul had SIXTEEN draft picks* traded out with him in deals, almost certainly the NBA record.
*including pick swaps as picks
I was curious about which player had been traded for the most draft picks total in NBA history (side note:I THINK it’s James Harden at 18, again counting pick swaps) and looked at CP3 since he’s moved around a lot. What I found is that, weirdly enough, CP3 was pretty consistently getting moved WITH draft capital not FOR it.
Trade 1:Hornets to Clippers (insert Lakers trade joke here)
The Hornets sent 2 second round picks alongside Paul to the Clippers.
Trade 2:Clippers to Rockets
No picks this time with him, our total stays at 2.
Trade 3:Rockets to Thunder
Now our total starts to really climb, as the Rockets sent 2 1sts and 2 pick swaps with Paul to OKC, bringing us up to 6.
Trade 4:Thunder to Suns
Again no picks, we stay at 6.
Trade 5:Suns to Wizards
Now we’re talking. The Suns sent four 1st round pick swaps and SIX second round picks to the Wizards with CP3.
Trade 6:Wizards to Warriors
No picks again, we stand pat at 16.
Trade 7:Clippers to Raptors
Again we see no picks moved with CP3, and with his retirement, our final tally will almost certainly remain at 16.
I’m fully aware that all those 2nds in the Suns/Wizards trade is doing some heavy lifting, but it’s still interesting that one of the best players of all time so constantly had the teams that were trading him having to send picks to get rid of him instead of receiving.