2. Chris Paul, Oklahoma City Thunder
In the age of analytics, some people think stats are the only thing important with NBA Players. There is no stat that can measure a player’s drive, heart or leadership. After trading all-star point guard Russell Westbrook for an aging superstar in Chris Paul, going into the 2019-20 season everyone expected the Thunder to be down at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.
Oklahoma City instead has been competitive. They have been so competitive they are currently 40-24, 6th in the West with a chance to get home court in the first round of the playoffs. To say they’ve passed all expectations that were set for them by media and fans would be an understatement. Dennis Schroder and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander have been given a lot of the credit, but they couldn’t have had the season they are having without Chris Paul.
If the Thunder make it to the playoffs, this will be the fourth team Paul has led there. Although Paul has never been to the NBA Finals, he is known as a winner. Teams that he has played for have gone 696-436 in his career. When you look at his impact in the win column, Paul has increased his team’s wins by 12.6 games when joining a new team.
This season he is averaging 17.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 6.8 assists per game. His numbers may not look spectacular, but talk to any of the young players about his leadership, and they will tell you what he’s done for them this season. Most thought he was done, but Chris Paul is showing he has more left in the tank.