According to the Los Angeles Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, Chris Paul will not be a starter and will most likely be coming off the bench; being featured as their leader of the second unit.
“There’ll be nights Chris plays a lot, there’ll be nights he does not … Chris started 82 games last year and was a very, very productive player. So we don’t take that lightly when you’re taking on a different role. And so there were a lot of conversations, you put everything on the table and get everyone comfortable with it,” said Frank on Tuesday.
During Paul’s career, he’s only played off the bench in 40 games. In total, he’s started 1,314 of 1,354 career games. The Point God’s run with the Golden State Warriors was the only franchise in his career where he came off the bench.
Despite the 40-year-old saying he would want to be a starter and play a lot, it reportedly looks like he has changed his mind and has come to peace of the idea of no longer starting and taking a backseat role.
James Harden and Kawhi Leonard were brought in before the Clippers made the decision to have a reunion with the future Hall of Famer.
“What James talked about with Chris was his ability to see the floor like few others, the leadership skills he brings, the competitiveness and his everyday work ethic and approach. He thought that Chris would be a great fit for the team,” added Frank.
Even though changes are being made to his role and how many minutes he sees per night; the one thing Paul will not have to give up is his jersey number. Bradley Beal has confirmed that he is giving up wearing number three so that the veteran point guard can remain having that number.
In his 20 years of playing, Paul has not worn any other number. Number three is the only number he’s ever worn. For Beal, he will decide on a new number at a later date.
Last season, Paul averaged 8.8 points and 7.4 assists per game for the San Antonio Spurs.
