Chris Paul Could Barely Hold Back Tears After Passing Jason Kidd To Become 2nd All Time In Assists

Michael Gonzales. Getty Images.

By now anyone who clicked on this blog should know the deal. I've said for years while doing this job that I don't care who it is and what it is, if someone in the NBA manages to accomplish something that makes NBA history, I'm in. 

If that player also happens to be a living NBA legend who I've watched play for over half my life and arguably one of the best players in the history of the league at his position, even better.

With his 10 assist (and 2 TOs) performance against the Pelicans, which in some way was fitting given his playing history, that's exactly what happened with the Point God Chris Paul.

OK, two things before we get going here.

1. My brain is still having a hard time getting used to CP3 being in a Spurs jersey. Even 20+ games into the year, that still feels weird to me. I'm not sure why because he's played for 7 teams in his career, but it still looks weird to my brain.

2. Nobody in our lifetime is ever going to touch the John Stockton number. What the fuck even is that?

Now, when it comes to CP3, I get that he's not everyone's cup of tea. Given that we live in a RINGZ culture, it's no surprise that his lack of a championship impacts how a lot of people view him as a player and his career. It's not too different from how James Harden is viewed as well, especially after just like CP3, he too moved up into 2nd all time in a career stat (3PM). When that happened you heard the same old "So what, he doesn't have a ring!" nonsense instead of you know, appreciating one of the greatest offensive players in NBA history.

You get a lot of that with CP3. Even if this achievement was more a formality once we all knew he was going to keep playing, that doesn't make the achievement any less impressive, at least to me. While it would be cool if CP3 had a ring, I also believe he was a pulled hammy away from getting it while he was a Rocket, and even without one he's still one of the best point guards not just of his era, but of any era in league history.

Maybe it's because I'm getting soft as I age and there's something about seeing all these superstars from my era of the NBA get to this stage of their careers where they only have a few seasons left, but it was hard not to get emotional listening to CP3 after the game

I mean, I don't give a shit about the Spurs or really even CP3 as a player, but I do appreciate NBA history. I think it's cool that we were able to witness an all-time great at a position do his thing. I felt that way after LeBron broke the scoring record, or after Steph broke the 3PM record, or after Harden moved into 2nd in 3PM. Call me a weirdo or a sucker all you want, that's fine by me. In a league with so many great players throughout its history, it's awesome that in our current era, we have witnessed some of the best to ever do it.

There's going to be a day where eventually, the old guard of LeBron/KD/Steph/CP3/Harden/Westbrook etc are all out of the league and frankly it's not going to feel the same. That doesn't mean the next wave isn't filled with players who have the potential to be all time greats, but we've been watching this group for 20+ years play at an insanely high level. 

Now that they're all on the last leg of their careers, I find myself being more appreciative towards them than anything else. After years and years of praying on their downfall (mostly just LeBron tbh), at this point, I don't have nearly the same level of sports hate towards that group as I once did, and I think that comes with age. That hate has turned into appreciation for the insane careers they've managed to have, with or without a title.

There's a reason Chris Paul is the Point God. That's because few players have ever played the possession better. Sure he'll hit someone in the dick with a shady play every once in a while, but nobody is perfect. 

P.S.

I also don't think we can overlook the CP3 impact on the Spurs. He's not what he once was, but just like he did in OKC, suddenly the Spurs are winning. They sit at 12-12 through 24 games and right outside a top 6 seed (1.5 back) and while that may not sound impressive on the surface, remember the Spurs didn't win their 12th game of the year last season until Game 60, when they were 12-48 (funny enough, beating OKC to do it).