Blake Griffin Names Chris Paul a Top-Five Point Guard of All Time
Even without a championship, Paul’s career stats and leadership speak volumes.
The Los Angeles Clippers’ “Lob City” era didn’t end as most expected it to. Still, there’s a lot of mutual respect between the players.
During a recent episode of the Run It Back podcast, former NBA player Blake Griffin spoke about his former teammate, Chris Paul.
“[Chris Paul] has got to be a top-five point guard of all time.” - Blake Griffin
The Lob City Connection
Griffin’s opinion holds a lot of weight.
Along with center DeAndre Jordan, Griffin and Paul played together on the Clippers from 2011 to 2017, establishing themselves as one of the most exciting duos of the decade. Due to their ability to get out into transition and put together electrifying alley-oop dunks, they earned the nickname “Lob City”.
Although Griffin carried many of the highlight performances, Paul played a significant role. In those years, Paul averaged 18.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 9.8 assists, and 2.2 steals. He found himself in numerous MVP conversations throughout those seasons, earning five All-Star, All-NBA, and All-Defensive Team selections.
Despite falling short of a single Western Conference Finals appearance, Paul and Griffin brought light to the Clippers organization. They made the postseason each year while putting together two 56-win seasons.
Paul’s Legendary Resume
Paul’s 20-year career has been a tremendous one.
He has career averages of 17.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 9.2 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. He is a 12-time All-Star who was named to 11 All-NBA teams and nine All-Defensive teams. He led the league in assists five times and in steals six times. He currently ranks second all-time in assists with 12,499 and steals with 2,717.
Although he lacks a championship, his resume is one of the most decorated ones in NBA history.
Cory Nelson is a contributor to The Lead. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson, Instagram @ckenzynelson, and Threads @ckenzynelson