1. I really like Chris Paul and wish we could have kept him. 2. I’m skeptical, to say the least, of what Russell Westbrook will bring. I think CP is underrated and Russ is overrated. 3. CP isn’t the first guy to push his way into a salary that exceeded his value and led his employer to let him go. And he won’t be the last. When you demand that kind of money and don’t deliver on it, the consequences are on you.
Rockets gave him that big of a contract for playing about 70% of the games... Rockets did CP3 very good.
So your telling me your "source" told you that Chris Paul is unhappy and feels betrayed...? Hmmm .....is this "source" of yours common sense?
The story makes sense. Chris Paul gave his all the first season with us and brought us close to a championship. Unfortunately, he could never recover from that injury.
Story doesn’t exactly add up with regards to play style switching and not switching back and Harden continuing to be as ball dominant when Chris returned from injury.... Month Player(games) : usg% / touches / time of possession October Harden(4) : 32.6 / 88.5 / 9.6 Paul(4) : 24.8 / 81.5 / 8.3 November Harden(14) : 37.4 / 89.4 / 9.4 Paul(12) : 22.9 / 75.1 / 7.4 December Harden(15) 39.0 / 92.1 / 9.8 Paul(10) 20.8 / 69.7 / 6.1 January - this is where Paul was hurt, came back for the last 2 games of the month and was eased back in Harden(14) 43.5 / 93.9 / 10.2 Paul(2) 18.6 / 57.5 / 4.5 February - Paul is back Harden(11) 39.3 / 84.2 / 8.8 Paul(11) 21.7 / 73.1 / 7.1 March Harden(15) 41.6 / 81.5 / 8.6 Paul(14) 21.7 / 66.6 / 6.3 April Harden(5) 36.3 / 71.2 / 7.3 Paul(5) 22.3 / 60.2 / 5.2 Harden’s peak usage, touches and time of possession all were in January with Paul gone. When Paul returns from injury Harden’s time of possession and touches all drop to levels LOWER than before Paul’s injury. And Paul had NO shortage of time with the ball.
People keep saying Harden doesn't want to play a different style but contrary to that Steph Curry says Harden told him he got tired of the ISO style and wanted more ball movement. Problem is when you move the ball and your teammates start choking you just gotta get more talent. Bye CP3 and Hello Westbrook!
It would change not being able trade his ass if he sucked. We got very lucky that OKC wanted ship WB to the place he wanted and also the Leonard even left Toronto int he first place if not we'd be stuck with a 34 year old injury prone "superstar" making 40 mil a year. It does matter.
Right! He's following the hater narative and ignoring context. Harden had to do what he did or we wouldnt have even made the playoffs. He wanted Cp a couple of years ago so that he had help but CP3 always injured and sucked when he wasnt this past season. He is a shell of his former self but wass till acting like he was a superstar. No one wants to play with OLD Kobe. No thank you.
His claim was the Rockets played a certain way and shared the ball pre injury. During injury, Harden becomes Uber ball dominant, less ball sharing and then claims when Chris returns that the ball sharing doesn’t return and Harden continues to dominate the ball like when Chris was out. Numbers say Harden had the ball the LEAST of the entire season AFTER Paul returns from injury.
So why the **** would Chris want to take less just so he can be traded if he wanted to stay here long term and win a championship
Who knows whats really the truth, but one thing for sure, if I was a player and i was reading this. I would never want to be loyal to most of you. You guys make KD's decision to go to GS almost justifiable.
CP3 isn't capable of being the go-to guy on a team anymore. He is slower now and old enough that he is no longer an elite defender against guards as well. CP3 still knows the game. He can shoot the ball, has heart, and can pass. He's good at all of that. If he was able to accept a role as back up I wouldn't mind keeping him. Westbrook is a better scorer than CP3. He isn't great from 3, takes plays off on defense, but creates problems for the defense of other teams. I'm skeptical how there will be enough ball to go around with him and Harden. I have my doubts that he has the mentality to carry and lead a team to the championship. If I'm wrong, then it will be a great trade. If my fears are right, then the trade doesn't really matter either way because we weren't going to win CP3 as the number 2 option. I guess I'm willing to give it a chance and hope that I'm wrong. The same ol' team wasn't going to win a championship. The very fact that this is a different attempt makes it a worthwhile risk. I want to be excited about, but I'm not really too optimistic.
One thing will never change, NBA players,no matter how much they have accomplished, will not stick around long if they feud with the big dog.
