"Washed up" Chris Paul is the best clutch player in the NBA and will be in All-Star Game this year

Yes, but only 9 to 11 shots is in the nets. 20 shots are missing

 

If he played all the games he would still be in Houston. He was getting injured every season and getting older. We had to do what we had to do.

 

Not true. CP started changing his diet and rehabbing his body well before the 2019 off-season, and he was one of the first players on the team to hit the Rockets facilities to work out after the Game 6 elimination. And yes, he would've started '18-'19 season out of shape because he did just reinjure his hamstring that May. I imagine that would've left him out of commission for at least several weeks into the summer. This slander is unfair.

 

I think the reality is that we were never going to get a healthy Chris Paul, one who could play at least 60 games, here in Houston. For an ageing, injury-prone player like himself, he was not going to be able to sustain the carry job that's asked of any 2nd option in this Houston offense. IMO the Thunder’s offense and defense aren’t as naturally taxing as Houston’s with the iso game and the switch everything defense. In addition, he's made a massive change to his body and diet during the offseason as a result of the decline everyone could see. He isn’t the same athlete he was last season. So I'm not surprised that he's had a successful season so far. A lot of people in NBA fandom expected him to be hurt by now, but those changes (both to his health and his situation) have made the difference.

 

His hamstring magically got less injury prone? Oh no? Ok.

 

Ok, I was not a fan of the CP3 trade either, but this thread is ridiculous

 

Is that a point against, then?

 

Haha...good point!

BUT, you need to consider the second bests on the relevant teams in the West are Paul George,, Anthony Davis, and previously Steph Curry (next year back to Klay Thompson). So, a pretty high hurdle to clear.

 

Russel is there. Basicaly every night. It was rarity to see Harden and Chris together to the point I watched half of last season with either.

 

CP3 is not walking through the Rockets home locker room. Melo is never coming back and DMo is done. No one wanted CP3, we got lucky and we traded him before his contract becomes a Bobby Bonilla contract. If CP3 wasn't about money, he would be wearing a Lakers uniform, or Heat uniform. He wanted to get paid so he got stuck with OKC. Remember OKC wanted to trade him, but no team wanted him and his contract even the Lakers (at the urging of Lebron). CP3 is playing better because he wants a contender to continue his contract.

Taken from a recent article:

just in time for Paul to take advantage at the age of 32 with a four-year, $159.7 million contract. It was under Paul’s own executive leadership that he would sign a deal to become the second-highest-paid player in the league this season. And it’s because of that deal that Paul now finds himself in a limbo of his own making.


Thanks for the time CP3. Love your floor game, but not your money game.

 

I've been watching Thunder games. Gilgeous-Alexander and Schroeder are the stars or, at least, best players on that team. But Paul is better than serviceable as the old hand guiding these otherwise ragtag upstarts. He's made the best out of a bad situation and is a pro's pro. I wish him the best.

 

As much as my love/appreciation for cp3 got heightened when he came to us and dominated that first year, I still stand by the decision for both teams to exchange pgs. With this point in his career, cp3's strengths of cerebral on-the-fly coaching/orchestrating simply don't mesh with harden's. When cp3 was still elite, he had enough ability to iso to earn harden's trust, but harden needs/wants a guy who isn't just great at the micro-management of the game, but who can score for himself and allow him to take whole possessions off (whether I like him doing this is another discussion). As much as I was a little bitter that Harden just didn't trust cp3 once his first step was gone, it makes sense that Westbrook's style of play and their relationship makes this pairing better than last year's. Of course, I don't think anything beats the 2017-2018 season, but the trade was the right move to make for 2019-2020.

Having said that, I still follow cp3 and how he's doing in OKC. He didn't revert back to the 2017-2018 cp3, but he does look significantly better than last year. I'm honestly surprised to see him shift guys as much as I'm seeing this year. Of course most of them are off the ball screen, but I just don't recall much of that last year. I mostly remember him languishing in his overall movement last year and taking a few too many threes. Could be his diet, or just not having to rehab on the fly mid-season, but he looks at least a half step quicker and he's choosing his spots for when to be aggressive in, connecting on 47% of his shots overall, much of which is midrange. He simply doesn't get as ample of these opportunities if Harden is there. His defense continues to slip ever so slightly, but the mental aspect of the game, baiting swing-through fouls in key junctures, and being patient to find his midrange off the picks, AND giving opportunity for shroeder and SGA to develop as playmakers has made him an ideal fit for a young OKC team that has good enough vets to squeeze into the playoff picture. I doubt that Westbrook would have been better with the current OKC team but I do know he's better playing next to Harden at this point in their careers. You'd never see cp3 finishing with the athletic layups WB has so far this season.

 

I think it is clear that for all his talent. Harden doesn't play well in the sandbox with others. How long before her throws Westbrook under the bus?

 

Cp3 versus Westbrook
TMac versus Steve Franchise

Lateral Moves?

Rocket River

 

Funny how we the least clutch team this year

 

Anyone know how D Mo, Scola and Kevin Martin are doing too? How about crazy Bobby Sura?

 

Harden doesn’t play well in the sandbox with dudes who are declining and missing games...see Dwight...see CP0

 

Too bad he annoyed harden

 

Raises big questions, then, about why he took nearly off an entire season.

 

He should’ve told Morey he was going vegan before the trade

Things could’ve been different