Chris Paul is 22 years old and a little more than halfway through his third season in the NBA.
If you were to take a trip to Paul's house and look through his trophy case, you'd most likely find his Rookie of the Year award, an NBA 2K8 cover, and several honors from his college days at Wake Forest. He has played in 195 regular season games, one All-Star game, and zero playoff games since being drafted by New Orleans in 2005.
Steve Nash is 34 years old and a little more than halfway through his twelfth season in the NBA.
If you were to take a trip to Nash's house and look through his NBA trophy case, you'd most likely find his two Most Valuable Player awards, the Time magazine article that lists him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, Canada's highest civilian honor, the Order of Canada, and several different Canadian Athlete of the Year awards. He has played in 835 regular season games, six All-Star games, and 97 playoff games since being drafted by Phoenix in 1996.
Judging by all of this information, which player do you think should have been intimidated going into Wednesday night's battle between the Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Hornets?
Everyone who said Chris Paul, try changing your answer.
The young guard has had Steve Nash's number all season long—the Hornets swept the season series against Phoenix with yesterday's win—and with each passing day, Paul is slowly prying away at Nash's torch and making more and more people realize that he is the best point guard in the NBA.
- B/R Ticket Guide
Let's take a look at how each player performed on Wednesday.
Steve Nash's stat line: 8 points, 13 assists, 0 rebounds, 0 steals, 4 turnovers
Chris Paul's stat line: 25 points, 15 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 turnover
This isn't just about one game either. While Nash averages .8 more assists per game, Paul makes up for this with his scoring, defense, and rebounding. He trumps the Canuck in all of these categories and most importantly, he does this without all of the weapons Nash has at his fingertips.
Rather than being surrounded by Amare Stoudemire, Shaquille O'Neal, Leandro Barbosa, and Grant Hill, Paul distributes the rock amongst David West, Tyson Chandler, Jannero Pargo, and Peja Stojakovic.
There is no doubt that Steve Nash and Chris Paul are the two best playmakers in the league. They are numbers one and two in assists per game respectively and neither the Suns nor Hornets would be where they are today if you were to remove them from each team's attack. I do believe, however, that Paul can impact a game in more ways than Nash since he is the superior defender, rebounder, and scorer.
Following the Phoenix game, Mike D'Antoni was asked about Chris Paul's progression and had this to say: “He’s pretty good. I don’t think anybody has an answer for him. Chris is going to get his, and there’s nothing anyone is going to do about it."
D'Antoni wasn't the only person singing Paul's praises.
Shaquille O'Neal added, "Chris Paul is an established floor leader, he gets everybody involved. He is a pretty hard guy to stop."
What Paul is doing at age 22 is incredible. His name has been mentioned in Most Valuable Player talk and has turned the Hornets into legitimate contenders in the insanely competitive Western Conference. In comparison, it took Steve Nash nine years in the league to become an amazing point guard and win his first MVP award.
If you don't agree that Paul is the best point guard in the league at this moment in time, then so be it. He'll change your mind eventually. He comes out and dominates against the league's other top point guards because he has something to prove and you doubting him only fuels his fire to be the best.
I'll leave everyone with one last thought that might scare you:
Chris Paul is still a few years away from his prime and he's already tearing up the league.
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10 months ago
Nice write up, I agree CP3 is the best PG in the league.
10 months ago
Thanks for the comment. :)
10 months ago
Also, Paul's stats have went up since last night's impressive game so the stat differentials I talk about in the article are now different. It still supports my claim though because Paul's averages will be increasing while Nash's will be decreasing.
10 months ago
The funny thing is that his play this year is just as good as his MVP years. Meaning he played no defense then and he plays no defense now. Also, the previous multi-year MVP's prior to Nash are Duncan, Jordan, Magic, and Bird. Combined they have 18 titles. No other multi-year MVPs have 0 titles. That Nash has even one MVP is a joke and an insult to the award.
10 months ago
I think people were blown away with his assist numbers and Phoenix's fast paced, exciting offense. People don't realize that his numbers are, in large part, a product of that system. At one point, he was surrounded by two All-Stars in Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion and one player who would go onto become an All-Star in Joe Johnson.
Meanwhile, Chris Paul had David West who was NOTHING before Paul got to New Orleans. Let's take a look at West pre-Paul and post-Paul.
2004: 6.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, .436 FG%
2005 (Paul's rookie season): 17.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG, .512 FG%
Coincidence? I think not.
Also, Paul has revitalized Tyson Chandler's career. Many people labeled him a bust in Chicago when he was putting up mediocre numbers and not meeting expectations as a second overall pick. It's not until he came to New Orleans and played with Paul that he became a great player. Go to google and type his name in. If you look at his NBA profile, you'll see that his best years have come with Paul leading the show.
What I'm trying to say is, Stoudemire, Marion, and Co. were good players before Nash and they make him look good. Paul on the other hand, turned around West and Chandler's careers and has helped them tremendously.
10 months ago
Watch the Suns when Nash goes to the bench. They look like a completely different team. The floor spacing goes away. The rythm goes away. The addition of Grant Hill has helped. But still the difference when Nash is on the floor is unavoidable.
Paul is better than Nash all-around because of his defense, but I think the edge still goes to Nash offensively.
Of course Paul is still very young and there has got to be some point when Nash is going to show his age in his play. So it is forseeable that Paul will be better in the future. But for now I think I'd still take Nash as the best PG in the league. It's very very close though.
10 months ago
^Thanks for the comment.
One thing Nash has the advantage in over Paul is his shooting. He has a better long range shot but as far as who is the better floor general, I'd take Paul. When Nash was in Dallas, he wasn't nearly as successful as he is now. It's all because of the system. Put Chris Paul in Phoenix and I'm convinced they'd be better than they are right now with Nash. Paul may not have Nash's three point shot but he makes up for it with his defense, rebounding, and scoring from other areas on the court.
10 months ago
You mis-typed Jose Calderon, but I'll let it slide because I like you.
from 10 months ago
Haha, he may be the best point guard in Toronto but not in the league. ;)
10 months ago
Paul is one of the NBA's best point guards no doubt about it. He doesnt however dominate everyone. He still cant throw down on Deron Williams like he did Steve Nash. Here are some stats from NBA.com.
Paul has struggled in his career against Utah, averaging just 13.8 points and 8.1 assists and shooting 37.9 percent in eight career games, as New Orleans has gone 1-7. He struggled with foul trouble and had just six points and six assists in a 110-88 loss in Salt Lake City on Feb. 4, the Hornets' fourth straight loss to the Jazz - all by double digits.
Deron Williams owns Chris Paul. I'm not saying he is better then Paul but in head to head matchups, His team wins. His stats are almost a wash with Paul getting 2 more ast per game but Deron scoring 4 more pts so it basically cancels out. Paul gets 2.1 steals compared to 1.1 for Deron.
Whats really interesting is Pauls stats against Deron compared with Paul stats against the rest of the leagues PG's this year.
Against Deron and the Jazz.
10.5 points(-10.3) 6.0 AST(-4.8) rebounds 5.0(+1.0) Steals 1.5(-1.2) Turnovers 4.5(+2.0) FG% 34.7%(-13.3%) Mins 31.0 (-6.5)
So you can see all his stats are worse except he rebounds better against the Jazz. I have seen every CP3-D-Will matchup and the most telling sign for me is Chris' body language when he plays has to go up against Deron. He knows Deron owns him and he just hopes that somehow nobody else will start talking about it in the media.
Overall better player right now Chris Paul, Head to Head D-Will Dominates.
10 months ago
That's a fair argument. I can see how Williams may be better in head to head match ups but not overall.
It reminds me of the Magic and the Pistons.
In years past, even when Detroit had injuries or wasn't 100% against Orlando, they still won because Orlando is intimidated by them. Whether it's in the playoffs (they were swept last year by Detroit) or in the regular season, the Magic are scared to death to play the almighty Pistons.
10 months ago
The big question is if the Jazz and Hornets meet in the playoffs 4-5 seeds most likely will Paul still be considered better overall if Deron and the Jazz beat them when it counts the most?
10 months ago
The big question is if the Jazz and Hornets meet in the playoffs 4-5 seeds most likely will Paul still be considered better overall if Deron and the Jazz beat them when it counts the most?
10 months ago
CP3 is the NBA's 2008 version of Isiah Thomas and then some. Paul is just getting started and to run the point, be a floor leader, a true general at the age of 22 is something special. He is a class act both on and off the court.
from 10 months ago
I agree. He seems like a really great guy. His ceiling is unlimited. Every time I watch him, I can't believe he's 22.
10 months ago
27 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals last night. Paul sure knows how to fill up a stat sheet.
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