With the NBA season nearing a close and free agency only a few weeks away, a lot of questions have been asked about where Clippers guard Chris Paul and Lakers center Dwight Howard, the top two players of the 2013 free agent class, will end up.

Both have been reported to have issues with their organizations, increasing the speculation that they might seek to join other teams. Also, according to ESPN.com’s Chris Broussard, they have recently been in contact with each other about joining forces to win a championship. They are two of the best players at their respective positions, and can provide a boost for any team looking to make a championship run. They will be heavily sought after by any team willing to make the necessary cap space for one or both of the stars.

However, due to the high salaries they are likely to command and the eagerness to land one of the all-star free agents in next year’s class (headlined by LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade, and Tony Parker), there are few teams able and willing to make a run at them. That being said, these are the three most likely scenarios for Howard and Paul:

3. Howard and Paul sign with Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks have long been considered the frontrunner to land both all-stars if they decided to join forces to win a championship. They only have three players (Al Horford, John Jenkins, and Lou Williams) under contract for next season for approximately $18.6 million, giving them about $34 million in cap space when you take into account the picks they have in the upcoming draft.

However, if the Hawks want to build a championship roster around these two, they would have to trade either Jenkins or Williams, along with some of their draft picks, and not add too much additional salary, as well as convince both players to take less than max salary to add a good supporting cast.

Unfortunately for the Hawks, who have been fined for violating the NBA’s anti-tampering policy, neither Howard nor Paul seem interested in playing for Atlanta. Both players are happy in Los Angeles, and it’s unlikely that they could both be convinced to take less money to move out of Los Angeles, even if they could assemble a Big 3 with Horford to rival Miami’s.

The Hawks would have to be willing to make some trades and possibly go over the salary cap in order to convince Howard and Paul to team up for the Hawks, and even then it’s no guarantee they’d be willing to team up there.

2. Howard and Paul sign with Los Angeles Clippers

If Howard and Paul decide to sign with the same team, I believe it’s more likely that they choose to sign with the Clippers than the Hawks. Both players are happy to be in LA, and, unlike the Lakers, the Clippers can create the necessary cap space to sign both superstars. Unfortunately for the Clippers, it will still require a fair amount of effort to unite the two stars.

According to ESPN, the Clippers have engaged in trade talks with both the Boston Celtics for coach Doc Rivers and forward Kevin Garnett and the Lakers for Howard. As things stand, the Celtics are unwilling to part with Rivers for the final three years of his contract unless the Clippers send DeAndre Jordan, Eric Bledsoe, and a first-round pick to Boston for Rivers and Garnett. The issue the Clippers have is that they are hoping to send Bledsoe and forward Blake Griffin to the Lakers in a sign-and-trade for Dwight Howard.

I had this as my number one option as recently as Friday. However, as more details and stories became public, I started having mixed feelings about the entire scenario. Assuming the Clippers get what they want in both trades, they will have a “Big 3” of Howard, Paul, and Garnett, but will have sent fan-favorite Griffin to either the rival Lakers or the Celtics.

While it would provide an improvement on defense, and likely increase their chances of making it past the first round of the playoffs, sending their franchise player to a potential playoff opponent and rival after the most successful season in franchise history doesn’t seem like the best decision, especially after firing their head coach. If a coach willing to drop the "Lob City" reputation the Clippers have acquired is hired to replace Vinny Del Negro, then having Howard in the paint could propel the Clippers on a playoff run, despite his back problems.

Overall, while Howard and Paul are more likely to join forces in Los Angeles than Atlanta, I still don’t see it as the likeliest scenario. The Clippers would have to get their optimal result from two trades with two teams hoping to make a run at the NBA Finals. They can only trade Bledsoe to one other team, meaning that, if neither team budges, the Clippers won’t be able to assemble the team they’re hoping to compete with next season.

1. Howard stays with Lakers, Paul stays with Clippers

Despite all of the recent talk about Howard and Paul planning to join forces to create the next superteam, I believe that it’s more likely that both Howard and Paul will stay put with their respective organizations.

Even though both the Lakers and Clippers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, they both have positives entering next season. The Lakers, who closed out their underwhelming season with a 28-12 record to secure the final playoff spot, will return a very similar starting lineup to the one they hoped would lead them to the Finals this season. Bryant is ready to come back “with a vengeance” from his Achilles injury, and is eyeing to come back in time for the regular season, while coach Mike D’Antoni has figured out how to take advantage of the Lakers’ strengths. Howard, who complained about his role with the Lakers this past season, will get a max contract from the Lakers and an increased role with the team, as D’Antoni will try and run the offense through him more to keep Bryant fresh throughout the season and replicate their success from the end of the regular season.

Ending trade talks with the Lakers for Howard would allow the Clippers to focus on acquiring Rivers and Garnett, who can provide postseason experience to a team that has rarely been there, as well as ensure a max contract for Paul, who, like Howard, has expressed his issues with his organization. They can spend the offseason building a team centered around the "Big 3" of Paul, Griffin, and Garnett, and further improving on their already strong core in order to make it past the first round of the playoffs.

Reach Staff Writer Andrew Schultz here or follow him on Twitter.