Chris Paul has been traded in back-to-back years and three times in the past four seasons.- Paul is one of the most impactful players in the
NBA , but he rarely sticks with teams. - Paul has helped the Suns make a big leap this season but soon could be on the move again.
Willie Green knew what the
Green, an assistant coach with the Suns, played with Paul twice during his career: in 2010-11, with the New Orleans Hornets, and then from 2012 to 2014 with the Los Angeles Clippers. He saw up close the effect that Paul can have on a team.
"I think sometimes people don't give him enough credit for what he's done in the NBA and what he's done with the different organizations that he's been to," Green told Insider. "He's made a major impact. It's just hard to come by leaders like him."
The overwhelming view in the NBA world is that Paul, 35, is still an elite point guard and one of the league's best leaders.
But that perception seems to fly in the face of Paul's recent reality: He has been traded in each of the past two offseasons and is on his fourth team in five years.
It's not uncommon for players in the later stages of their careers to bounce from team to team. It's less common for a perennial All-Star who ranks among the NBA's best players to keep getting passed around.
Each year, the team acquiring Paul has been better for it. Has he finally found a home with the surging second-place Suns?
Why Paul keeps getting traded
Advanced stats love Paul. From 2019 to 2021, Paul ranks ninth in total win shares. In that same span, he ranks 12th in value over replacement player and 18th in box-score plus-minus among players who have played over 1,000 minutes.
These are all fancy ways of saying that when Paul is on the floor, he helps teams win.
But none of the players who surround him on those lists have been traded multiple times in the past four years.
Circumstance has undoubtedly played a part in why Paul has been bounced around in recent years. Paul's four-year, $159.7 million contract that he signed in 2018 has played a big part too.
Paul exists in a strange realm in the NBA. He has remained an elite player for longer than most people would have believed possible. But because of his age and contract, he's an awkward fit for many teams:
- Too good, too old, and too expensive for young, rebuilding teams.
- Too old and too costly a trade target for all-in contenders.
The Houston Rockets signed Paul to his contract in the summer of 2018 after a Western Conference Finals appearance. They traded him one year later, after reports that Paul and James Harden's relationship had fractured.
The Rockets had to send two first-round picks to the Oklahoma City Thunder to swap Paul and the three years and $124 million remaining on his deal for Russell Westbrook (who one year later would become almost untradeable).
In Oklahoma City, Paul helped turn what many thought would be a lottery team into a No. 5 seed that took the Rockets to seven games in the first round of the playoffs.But in the offseason, the Thunder leaned into a rebuild, and it was their turn to get rid of Paul. In November, the Thunder traded Paul to the Suns for Kelly Oubre Jr., Ricky Rubio, Ty Jerome, Jalen Lecque, and a top-12 protected first-round pick in 2022.
Lest anyone think this was a haul for the Thunder, the team traded Oubre and Rubio before the season began. Only Jerome has logged minutes for the Thunder this season.
Paul has helped develop another playoff contender
The Suns, it turned out, seemed to be in a sweet spot as a young, rising team desperate for success and a taste of the playoffs. They just needed talent and veteran leadership.
"You always believe or think that a team wants to keep a guy like Chris," Green said. "But I can understand Oklahoma's position and what they wanted to do moving forward."He added, "It's a blessing to have him on our team now."
Suns players and coaches have gushed about Paul's leadership, his savvy, and, of course, his ability to orchestrate an offense.
"Just knowing the type of tradition and the type of dude and the type of career he had and the foundation he laid in this league, it's tremendous," Deandre Ayton told reporters in December of playing alongside Paul. "And knowing that I'm gonna be a part of his legacy? Oh yeah. I can't stop moving. I want to lift more weights. It's go time. You have a future Hall of Famer coming here to really show us the ropes and help me and Book out as young guys who can really take over this league."
"I'm learning from him every day," guard Devin Booker said in February. "He's been in every situation that I want to get to. So I have the cheat code of being alongside him, his backcourt mate. From on the court to off the court, just everything he does, I'm a sponge to it."
Paul's partnership with Booker has turned into a near-perfect mix for both players. Paul's stats this season are great but not mind-blowing - 16 points, five rebounds, and nine assists per game - and Booker's per-game numbers are down slightly from last season.
But the players have complemented each other nicely. Both can play on or off the ball, running a pick and roll or spreading the court for the other.
Suns head coach Monty Williams told ESPN's Michael Wilbon that Paul and Booker had set the tone in training camp, competing so fiercely that it felt as if they might fight. (Of course, they never did.)
Paul's arrival has also helped young core players like Mikal Bridges and Ayton grow their games and become more effective in their roles. Some of it has been a natural progression, but according to Green, Paul struck a balance in his leadership.
"I've seen him grow in the sense that he's willing to relinquish some of the leadership to other guys," Green said. "He understands how important it is for all the guys to take a step forward in there and lead by example, lead with their voices."Off the court, Green says, Paul organizes film sessions and gym sessions and invites teammates to his house.
On the court, Paul has a LeBron James-esque ability to read the opposition and tell his teammates what's coming.
"He's calling out [opponent] plays. He's telling our guys defensively what they're getting ready to run, how to guard it. He's talking about it in the huddles and timeouts," Green said.
"And so Chris is very cerebral. He's always thinking about this play and then maybe two plays ahead of what's getting ready to happen. And I think that just helps us as a young team."
Paul has been a perfect fit for Phoenix, but don't be surprised if he eventually lands somewhere else
As blissful as the partnership is - the Suns are second in the West with a 32-14 record - it's worth questioning how long it will last.
Paul has another year remaining on his contract, a $44 million player option he seems likely to pick up.
As happy as the Suns are with his play, they are facing an expensive future. Booker is in the second year of a $158 million extension. Bridges and Ayton will both be extension-eligible next season and will command a lot of money. The Suns signed key roles players in Dario Saric and Jae Crowder to deals worth a combined $56 million this past offseason.
It's a lot of money for a good team that is also likely just below the NBA's top contenders. Can Phoenix make another leap next year with the natural progression from its young players? Perhaps.
But once again, Paul's age doesn't quite line up with the core of Booker, Bridges, Ayton, and Cameron Johnson, all of whom are 25 or younger.
It's possible that Paul could be on the move again, and whichever team lands him will be getting a winner.