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Chris Paul’s reputation as one of the greatest point guards of all time was well established before the shocking and successful trade that sent him to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Russell Westbrook and an immense collection of draft picks and pick changes this summer. past. Less certain was how much CP3 still had left in the tank for a season that would see him turn 35.
Paul started the season with three years and $ 125 million left on his contract. He had not played more than 61 regular season games in the last three seasons due to injuries. Houston’s motivation to move him was due, at least in part, to his deteriorating relationship with James Harden, which provided further evidence that Paul’s incredibly demanding nature as a teammate made it difficult to work with him.
The capitol project that changed hands in the Westbrook for Paul swap offered further proof of how Paul was no longer considered an asset, at least not in that contract. Oklahoma City was able to arm Houston to deliver first-round picks in 2024 and 2026 (both protected 1-4), along with pick trades in 2021 and 2025. Following the deal that sent Paul George to the Clippers, the move by Thunder by Obviously, Paul was less about the player and more about future assets.
Most people didn’t even think Paul would play a game for Oklahoma City. What was the need for an ultra-expensive, aging point guard rebuilding team? There were rumors connecting Paul to the Miami Heat for weeks. But when business talks broke down and it became clear that CP3 would actually play for the Thunder, few expected a playoff run to be even in the realm of possibility.
The Thunder not only made the playoffs this season, they were actually better than a year ago with Westbrook and George. After a slow start, the Thunder were the third-best team in the NBA after Thanksgiving by winning percentage, trailing only the No. 1 seeds (the Bucks and Lakers) in every conference. None of that happens without Paul, who was an absolute wizard on the way to one of the best seasons of his illustrious career.
The Thunder’s season ended with a last-second loss to the Rockets in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series. It’s another bothersome end for CP3 in the playoffs, but their season must be viewed as an incredible success.
The Thunder were thought to be sinking without Westbrook and George. Instead, they only got better with CP3
Oklahoma City was seen as a fringe championship contender in the 2018-2019 season with Paul George locked into a new contract extension and Westbrook coming off two straight seasons in which he averaged a triple-double. Instead, the Thunder did well, not so well all season long and saw their campaign end in the first round with an iconic shot from Damian Lillard.
The Thunder’s disappointing finish in the 2019 playoffs made it difficult to see them as a championship contender again if they got it back, but it was certainly possible for OKC to make a deep run in the West with some tweaks on the roster. George’s trade request to Los Angeles blew everything up and positioned the franchise for a total rebuild. After George and Westbrook were moved, most preseason projections like this one from Jacob Goldstein had the Thunder projected to win 36 games with a 20 percent chance of making the playoffs.
No one would have guessed that OKC would be even better this year, but that’s exactly what happened.
Oklahoma City won 61.1 percent of its games this season and finished with the fifth seed in the West playoff draw. A year earlier with George and Westbrook, the Thunder won 59.8 percent of their games and finished with the sixth seed.
Oklahoma City’s credit for acquiring a proven shooter on the front court in Danilo Gallinari and one of the best young shooting guards in the game in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder’s three-guard lineup that also includes Dennis Schröder became the most devastating trio in the league, according to writer Michael Pina. Steven Adams also remained useful in center, and the Thunder seemed to find a gem in undrafted rookie Luguentz Dort, who briefly became the league’s most talked about player in Game 7.
However, there is no question who was the driving force behind OKC’s surprising season. All of Thunder’s success started with Chris Paul.
Chris Paul had one of the best seasons of his career
It sure seemed like Paul’s days as an All-Star were behind us going into the season. Paul hadn’t been on the All-Star team since 2016. There was a group of impressive young perimeter players in the West waiting for their turn. Yeah, Paul became an All-Star this season, remember that alley-oop dunk he threw? – but it was also much more than that.
By almost any definition, Paul was one of the best players in the NBA this year. Here are their league-wide rankings on various all-in-one stats attempting to capture on-court impact and contribution to victory:
How did Pablo do it? Especially when turning one of the most efficient shooting seasons of his career. There are some numbers that stand out:
- Paul’s 61 percent actual shooting this season was the second-best mark of his career.
- He made 55.4 percent of his two-point field goal attempts, his highest mark to date.
- Paul somehow hit 85.2 percent of his shots at the rim, surpassing his previous record of 70.6 percent in 2014.
Paul being so good at the rim with such a size and athletic handicap is truly one of the craziest numbers of the season. It is further evidence that intelligence and cunning are just as important as atypical physical ability when evaluating players.
Paul was also the money on the line, hitting 90.7 percent of his free throws. That alone should make Thunder fans more curious as to why Gallinari took (and missed) a free throw that could have cut the deficit to one point with one second left in Game 7.
CP3 could help many teams if they change it
Paul is now under contract for the next two seasons for about $ 85 million in total. It’s still a huge number on a compounding sheet, but it has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that it is worth the money. The Thunder could easily keep Paul for another year, but it would make sense for executive Sam Presti to take advantage of Paul’s courage after a fantastic season. There should be no shortage of suitors lining up to offer you intriguing packages.
The Milwaukee Bucks are on the brink of disaster in their second-round series against the Miami Heat. If the Bucks are eliminated, there’s no better move on the board than trying to trade for CP3 as a last-ditch effort to win a title in the last season that Giannis Antetokounmpo has signed.
The Philadelphia 76ers would be another great option for Paul. Adding CP3 would help Ben Simmons slide into a more natural power forward role and give the team another knockdown offside. Miami could also remain a suitor if they fall short this year, although the team is likely to want to keep its salary cap space open for Antetokounmpo in the summer of 2021. What if a young team looking to jump up the ladder like the Phoenix? Did Suns pressure Paul?
Of course, working on an exchange for CP3 and its giant salary will be extremely difficult and will likely require multiple teams to pull it off. It’s also a question of what would make it worthwhile for the Thunder, as they already have a ton of future draft picks from the Clippers and Rockets and switching that would surely send the team into a complete rebuild mode. Regardless, Paul should have immense value throughout the league after his career with the Thunder this year, and that makes him one of the most interesting potential pieces to move around during the offseason.
None of this even touches Paul’s responsibilities as director of the Players Association during an incredibly difficult year, especially once he hit the bubble.
Critics will hold Paul’s lack of playoff success against him, but the reality is that he dragged a Thunder team that no one thought would make the postseason to Game 7 and almost won it. Paul’s numbers throughout the seven-game series were pretty good, too: 21.3 points per game on 60.4 percent true shots.
Chris Paul is far from washed out, and he proved it this year. There is no better player to target a potential contender this offseason to take them to the next level.
