By Rhonda
Chris Paul makes every team better. Every team he goes to increases its win percentage. The New Orleans Hornets were 18-64 before Chris Paul was there. The season they added Chris Paul they went 38-44, improving by 20 wins. Paul took an Oklahoma City Thunder team that had 250/1 odds to win the NBA title to the brink of the second round in 2020. Less than eight months after the Suns acquired Paul in November 2020, they headed to the 2021 NBA Finals. He increases wins just by going to a franchise – simply put.
Paul is a winner and is without a doubt one of the greatest point guards in NBA history. He can control the pace of the game and his offense – it’s next level. But Paul hasn’t won a championship. A championship would seal his legacy. He deserves it more than anyone on the hardwood. An 11-time All-Star, Paul has made 9 All-NBA Teams and 9 All-Defensive Teams as a member of the Hornets, Clippers, Rockets, Thunder, and Suns – mind blowing. You don’t earn the nickname “Point God” without doing what Paul has done.
When Chris Paul goes to a new team, that team gets better.
Hornets
Before CP — .220 W%
After CP — .463 W%Clippers
Before CP — .390
After CP — .606Rockets
Before CP — .671
After CP — .793Thunder
Before CP — .598
After CP — .611Suns
Before CP — .466
After CP — .720 pic.twitter.com/T14age0A6Y— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 8, 2021
But Paul is not alone. From Charles Barkley to Patrick Ewing, there is a list of players who had an otherworldly skill level and the leadership abilities to win NBA championships, but fell short. They will never be able to capture that elusive ring. There is only one winner every season and a championship is not guaranteed even if you are Allen Iverson or Reggie Miller. This is a team game and it’s extremely different for one man to do it all.
There are always ROADBLOCKS. You knock them down or they knock you down. Eleven-time All-Star and one-time MVP Barkley played power forward as well as anyone, but he was stopped by the GOAT – Michael Jordan. In 2000/2001, Iverson was league MVP and took the 76ers to the finals, but he was stopped by arguably the best guard-big guy combo in NBA history, Shaq and Kobe. Miller spent his whole 18-year career in Indiana, and could have won a ring in 2004 or 2005, but he was stopped by the Pistons, and the Malice at the Palace debacle didn’t help either. Ewing was a juggernaut on both offense and defense but Hakeem Olajuwon’s Rockets stood in the way of his glory.
Super stats can qualify a player’s greatness, but in reality, greatness is measured by rings. We all know it. The number of chips a player has is used as a trump card in basketball debates. All-time NBA greats like Bill Russell and Michael Jordan consistently led their teams to championships and their resumes are further glorified because of it.
Paul has the chance to change the narrative before he calls it quits. For the 2021/2022 season, Paul averaged 14.7 points, 4.4 rebounds, a league-high 10.8 assists and 1.9 steals against only 2.4 turnovers across 65 games. He shot 49.3% from the field, including 31.7% from long range. The Point God did the unthinkable in Game 6 of the first-round by turning in one of the best playoff games by any player in the last twenty years. Paul shot a perfect 14-for-14, amassing 33 points, five rebounds and eight assists. He connected on a 3-point attempt and additionally made all four of his free throws. Does this season and a remarkable game like this seal his legacy? Depends on who you ask, but I certainly think it does.
The greatest playoff shooting performance in NBA history belongs to a 36-year-old PG in Year 17.
Don’t take Chris Paul for granted. pic.twitter.com/vB0NuPB12P
— Hilltop Hoops (@HilltopNBA) April 29, 2022
Paul said he’s at peace with his NBA career, but did admit his past frustrations about his inability to win a title. He has also said he remains adamant about winning his first chip. He has a strong chance of winning one, especially after what he showed us in Game 6, but there can only be one winner and we all know what mama said, life isn’t always fair, and that rule is no different in the NBA. But I hope life is fair for CP3 this season. I’d love to see him hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy and give his NBA career a proper bookend, unlike some of the other all-time greats who never reached the ultimate goal.
Chris Paul is the first player in NBA HISTORY to make 13+ shots in a Playoff game without a miss.@CP3: 14-14 shooting, 33 points pic.twitter.com/hXrWuvN68X
— NBA (@NBA) April 29, 2022
Picture Credit: Tulane Public Relations
