NEW ORLEANS -- Chris Paul's agent plans to travel to New Orleans on Wednesday with the intention of completing a contract extension that would keep the All-Star and Team USA point guard with the Hornets for an additional three to five years.
Lance Young, a senior director of the sports marketing and management company Octagon, said Tuesday that he had spoken to Hornets general manager Jeff Bower by phone and that they were in general agreement on the terms of an extension for Paul, who has one season remaining on his current contract.
"We seem to be pretty much on same page," Young said. "A little tweak here and there and we'll probably get it done in the next 48 hours."
Paul is seeking the maximum pay allowable under the league's collective bargaining agreement, or about 25 percent of the NBA salary cap with 10 percent raises going forward. Such a deal would pay Paul from $60 million to more than $80 million, depending on the length of the contract.
"It could be three, four or five years. We haven't really got into any details yet," Young said. "Chris wants to stay with the Hornets. It just depends on how long he's going to be there."
Tuesday marked the first day NBA teams could begin negotiations with free agents or current players who are seeking extensions.
Last season, Paul's averages of 11.6 assists and 2.7 steals per game led the NBA. He was second in MVP voting to the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant.
Paul also was the Hornets' second-leading scorer, averaging 21.1 points per game in helping the team reach a franchise-record 56 regular season victories.
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