Chris Paul is widely considered one of the best point guards in the NBA’s long history. Sure, CP3 hasn’t won a ring, but many fans and players are happy to sing his praises. This also includes Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade. The 43-year-old applauded Paul on the latest edition of his Time Out podcast.
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Wade knows ball so him praising Paul is not uncommon. It should be noted though that the two are very close friends, dating back to their famous “Banana Boat Crew” formation alongside LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. Wade was also the first to hint at CP3’s retirement at an event, although Paul has yet to make an official decision following his 20th season.
At 39 years old, Paul is still impressive. Wade and his pod crew commented on how he played all 82 games in this past season. “You’re talking about a player who has missed a lot of games due to injury in his career,” said Wade with pride over his friend’s accomplishment. However, Wade was also a little salty at a different CP3 accolade.
It was mentioned that Paul surpassed 23,000 points in his final game with the Spurs. In doing it, he became the first player to get 23K points and have at least 1,200 assists. “He has more points than I have,” chuckled Wade. The three-time NBA Champion confirmed that he only had about 22,000.
Paul’s longevity, along with his ability to elevate the offense of any team he joins, is what will place him on the Mount Rushmore of point guards. He played in the same era with some of the game’s greatest of all time like LeBron, Curry, and Kobe. Yet, CP3 still stands at the top of the list in certain areas.
Few players could have survived 82 full games pushing 40. His ball-handling skills are elite, a skill that is only second to the future Hall of Famer’s passing. There’s a reason he’s been referred to as one of the best floor generals in the game. The Point God is truly one-of-one.
Wade calls it lazy analysis when people don’t recognize CP3’s greatness because of his lack of a ring
As noted, the one thing that Paul has not achieved in his miraculous career is winning a championship. He got close in 2021, but was bested by Giannis and the Bucks. Wade knows the story, but still considers CP3 an all-time great, and called “ring culture” lazy analysis when looking at a player like Paul.
“That’s stupid. We are forever gonna be in a ring culture. So, people look at rings as being a winner. That’s easy, that’s lazy,” said Wade on an old episode of his pod.
“We are talking about individual, what CP is doing that’s still the individual part of basketball. What he is doing from a standpoint of steals, assists, longevity. He’s been doing this for 20 years, scoring as well.”
D-Wade is right. All hail the Point God.
