Editor’s note: Transformation Tuesday is for our writers to highlight the evolution or progression of a particular player or team, in any capacity.
Chris Paul is having a great season that I believe is going unnoticed. Due to the exciting play from James Harden and Steph Curry along with the constant triple doubles from Russell Westbrook, Paul is cruising along under the radar. As many know, I’ve never been a big CP3 fan due to his on-court antics but at the same time, as a man and as a fan of the game, you have to give credit
where credit is due.
| Player | Team | APG |
| Chris Paul, PG | LAC | 10.2 |
| John Wall, PG | WAS | 10.0 |
| Ty Lawson, PG | DEN | 9.8 |
| Russell Westbrook, PG | OKC | 8.3 |
| Rajon Rondo, PG | DAL | 8.1 |
| Steph Curry, PG | GSW | 7.7 |
| LeBron James, SF | CLE | 7.3 |
| Jeff Teague, PG | ATL | 7.2 |
| Michael Carter – Williams, PG | MIL/PHI | 7.2 |
| James Harden, SG | HOU | 7.1 |
Chris Paul has been consistent this year with his numbers right along line with his career averages. He’s averaging 18.6 points per game along with 10.2 assists per game which leads the league. The best floor general some may say, Paul is the closest thing we have to that of the standard pure point guard. Chris is leading the Los Angeles Clippers with a 41-23 record, holding the 5th seed in the Western Conference. They are trying to get over the steady hump that they’ve been facing for years in this tough conference. Injuries have been the Clippers’ demise this year with Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes facing injury and more importantly Blake Griffin being out with a staph infection. After the news of Blake’s injury, many people including myself, wrote the Clippers off, but CP3 had something to say to that.
Paul has helped Los Angeles produce an 8-4 record since Griffin’s injury. In this span of games, Chris Paul has averaged 20.5 points per game along with 12.6 assists per game. Doing his best to get every one involved, Paul had double-digit assists in every game except one in which he was only one shy. However, in an era where numbers mean everything, things are different when it comes to this surge of Chris Paul. The way he’s coached teammates on the floor, telling them where to be and just bringing out the best in them has meant wonders to that team, especially with the playoffs coming up. With Blake being such a big scorer for them, it was important for them to fill that void so they could maintain and still be able to contend. He has risen up in this situation where his team truly needs him, and that shows true leadership.
