On June 24, Chris Paul was traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Washington Wizards, then sent immediately to the Golden State Warriors. The Wizards received Patrick Baldwin Jr., Jordan Poole, and Ryan Rollins. Paul will be going into his 19th NBA career season with the Warriors as a point guard.
Paul, a 12 time All-Star player, was the 4th pick of the 2005 NBA draft for the New Orleans Pelicans, then known as the Hornets. He averaged 16 points, five rebounds, seven assists and two steals per game in his first year in New Orleans. After injury, Paul then moved on to play for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2011, signing a $107 million contract that kept him until 2017. Due to rest from injuries, Paul missed 21 regular season games in his final season with Clippers and averaged 18 points. In 2017, Paul was traded to the Houston Rockets. In his 2018-2019 season he was offered a $160 million contract with the Rockets, but due to a suspension and hamstring injury Paul didn’t stay long. Paul was then traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2019. He had a very successful year with them, getting his 10th All Star nod and had some of his season highs with the Thunder. His last trade before the Warriors was to the Phoenix Suns. Paul stayed with them until 2023 and he signed an extension contract for $120 million in 2021. He was one of the first NBA players with 20,000 points and 11,000 assists. With the Suns, Paul received his 11th All-Star nod.
Paul is due for a $31 million deal with the Warriors for his upcoming season, and may have to have an adjustment with his new squad. As Paul comes onto this powerhouse Warriors team, his position as a point guard may change, as Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are guards already. If there is smooth rotation between the three it would be a good season for Paul. It would take some of the pressure off of Curry and Thompson since they were the big two as guards. Paul could even have a chance to win a championship; it would be the first of his 1,214 regular season game and 149 playoff game career.
The main five for the season will most likely be Curry, Green, Thompson, Wiggins, and Looney. With the new addition of Paul, the Warriors would have more options to move people around as long as most of the players stay healthy this season. Paul will also bring more money into the team this season–the Golden State Warriors are valued at 7.56 billion, but we could potentially see this number rise even more. Everyone is excited to see how the Warriors, and Paul, shape up this year.
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