Whoa, Lakers deal for Chris Paul on hold - maybe dead

"In a wild twist to an already topsy-turvy day," writes the L.A. Times' Mike Bresnahan, "a person familiar with parameters of the trade said one of the involved parties suddenly had cold feet. Another person familiar with the trade who was not authorized to talk publicly said the NBA has stalled the deal, wanting to take a close look at it." The Lakers' brass is reportedly gathered in El Segundo trying to figure things out. Paul has tweeted his own surprise at the news.

Yahoo Sports goes farther and says the deal for Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom is dead: "NBA commissioner David Stern has killed the New Orleans Hornets’ trade of Chris Paul after several owners complained about the league-owned team dealing the All-Star point guard to the Los Angeles Lakers, league sources told Yahoo! Sports."

File photo of Gasol with Archbishop Jose Gomez, center, and visiting Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani of Lima.