Despite Praising Chris Paul’s Abilities, Stephen A. Smith Puts a Cap on Spurs’ Potential in 2024–25

The San Antonio Spurs have brought in vet Chris Paul to help out their franchise face Victor Wembanyama. The move has widespread approval considering that Paul’s floor managing capabilities will help Wemby get more touches, enhancing his offensive game. Talking about the Paul-Wemby pair-up, on his The Stephen Smith Show, Stephen A. Smith accepted that Paul would make the Spurs a better unit but also acknowledged their limited ceiling. 

The analyst relayed that despite having an off-color 2023-24 season with the Golden State Warriors, the 39-year-old still has a lot left in the tank. If anything, he’d be a terrific piece to upgrade the squad. Since Paul won’t be in a bench role anymore, he can reinvigorate his fortunes as a starter.

While admitting his ball-handling skills, accompanied by a solid jumper, the 56-year-old claimed that the veteran PG will improve the Spurs significantly. He stated,

“We need to look at this brother[Chris Paul] when he’s on the court for a significant chunk of minutes… Massive in the pick-and-roll, pick-and pop. Pulling up with those Wing, whether it is right or left wing jump shots, Chris Paul can still play and he is a born leader and he is going to elevate San Antonio Spurs.”

While he registered CP-3’s ability to enhance squads, he also felt that the 12X NBA All-Star should have closed out his career with a championship-contending team. Expectedly, Smith gave the unseasoned Spurs no chance of coming close to a title window,

“When you are as illustrious as Chris Paul has been in his career as a point guard, I’d like to see you vying for a championship… You ain’t winning no championship in San Antonio, they’re just too young.”

The veteran analyst is correct about Spurs’ limited window. They are still raw and a 39-year-old Chris Paul won’t automatically make them a title contender. At any rate, the Spurs fans will be relieved that their franchise centerpiece will have more opportunities to shine as an offensive player.

Can the San Antonio Spurs make a playoff run?

Historically, Paul has elevated bottom-feeding squads to playoff teams. Even at the age of 39, he has a ton of tricks up his sleeve which will benefit the fledgling Spurs. Last season, they had one of the least decisive ball-rotating squads because of their inexperience. While Tre Jones did stack up 6.6 assists per game, he arguably couldn’t extract the best out of Wemby.

Meanwhile, CP-3 knows how to maximize big men who can be offensive machines. Wembanyama, who was left high-and-dry during various possessions last season, will have increased chances of getting the ball in his desired spots. These factors can increase Spurs’ offensive production which, in conjunction with the Wemby-led defense, can lead them to a Play-in realm.

On that note, Gilbert Arenas also expects the Chris Paul-infused squad to be a 10/11 seed in the West next season. But at this stage of his career, will Paul be an upgrade over Jones, who at age 24 showed promising signs? If anything, he can be a terrific mentor to the 6’1” PG. This aspect shows that the Spurs management has long-term developmental goals in cognizance too.