Last week, David Stern, the NBA's Commissioner, decided to use his maniacal and tyrannical reign over the NBA to cancel a fair and wholly-agreed upon trade between three teams.

Despite Stern flexing his authoritative muscles and taking complete control of the transaction, the subsequent fallout made him look anything but powerful.

His reasoning behind the cancellation was unsupportive, his defence was feeble and even his most adamant supporters were hesitant to offer any words of encouragement.

The trade would have sent perennial all-star point guard Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers, and L.A. forwards Pau Gasol to Houston and Lamar Odom to New Orleans.

New Orleans would have also received Houston guards Kevin Martin and Goran Dragic and forward Luis Scola.

On the heels of the NBA lockout and an "improved” collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in place, this trade could not be allowed.

Not if the owners where to maintain some degree of credibility and integrity.

One of the most discussed issues in the new CBA was preventing star players from fleeing small market teams to play on larger stages.

Last season, LeBron James made his infamous exit from his hometown Celeveland Cavaliers team and traveled down to South Beach.

Carmelo Anthony publicly demanded to be traded to the New York Knicks, forcing the Denver franchise to unload one of the best talents their team has ever possessed.

After this trade was finalized, it was reported that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert immediately went to Stern and demanded that the trade be vetoed.

It was an elaborate trade package and one that benefited each team involved.

Trading away an all-star talent and receiving equal value is one of the most difficult maneuvers to pull off in any professional sport.

Dell Demps, the Hornets GM, had masterfully orchestrated the Paul trade, with Stern in the know during the entire process.

But before the papers could be signed, Stern decided it was best to forget about it.

In the official release he said the trade was cancelled due to "basketball reasons.”

He thought it was in the best interests of the franchise to retain Paul, despite the fact that Paul has announced publicly that he will not sign with the Hornets once his contract expires at the end of this season.

Stern's actions squandered an opportunity for the Hornets to come away with a competitive package of players. The possibility that Paul could walk away at the end of season, leaving the Hornets empty-handed, has once again become a possibility.

The trade was not cancelled due to basketball reasons; it was cancelled due to a self-invested political agenda.

There were six players involved in the trade, Paul being the only one actively seeking a new team.

The remaining five players were forced to experience the initial disappointment of being traded only to learn that the trade was cancelled and they were to return to the teams that had just publicly announced they didn't want them.

Lamar Odom was so distraught that he privately went to the Lakers management afterwards and asked to be traded.

L.A. ended up shipping the disgruntled forward to the Mavericks for a draft pick.

The same Mavericks team that eliminated the Lakers in the last season's playoffs, which drew the ire of the Laker's fans and their franchise player Kobe Bryant.

The entire situation has unraveled at Stern's feet.

The NBA is facing a potential lawsuit from Chris Paul, the fans have another reason to be disgusted with the politics of the league and now Stern has opened up an entirely new avenue in trade talks.

Will every trade be subject to analysis of the league owners? Who constitutes what is fair-value and which players are allowed to play for which team?

The bottom line is that Chris Paul wants out of New Orleans. He is not going to stay unless Stern somehow forces his hand.

By canceling this trade Stern effectively ruined the Hornets chances at retaining fair value while also continuing to alienate the players and the fans.

It's a sickening revelation in a season that continues to be undermined by bureaucracy and politics.