NBA Rumors: Chris Paul to return soon from injury as Golden State Warriors seek spark

NBA Rumors: Chris Paul is expected to return from injury soon as the Golden State Warriors continue to search for a spark.

The Golden State Warriors have struggled mightily all season long. However, with the NBA All-Star Break officially in the rearview mirror, if the Warriors have any hope of flipping a switch, now is the time to do so.

Heading into the stretch run, the Warriors need to be as healthy as possible. One return that they'll likely welcome with open arms is that of Chris Paul.

According to a recent report, Paul is expected to return from injury soon. As the Warriors prepare for the stretch run, they'll need all the help they can get.

Will a healthy Chris Paul spark the Golden State Warriors?

After electing not to make a move at the trade deadline, getting healthy gives the Warriors a best bet in trying to make a move in the Western Conference standings down the stretch. Even though Paul hasn't been especially productive so far this season for Golden State, he hasn't played in a game for the team since early January. Even from a strict depth perspective, the Warriors will gladly welcome back Paul into the fold.

In 32 games played this season, Paul is averaging nine points, seven assists, and four rebounds per game on 36 percent shooting from 3-point range. With Paul in the lineup this season, the Warriors are an even 16-16.

Over the last six weeks, Paul has been battling a hand injury. The hope is that once he does return, he'll be able to help spark the Warriors down the stretch. With just 29 games left in the season, the Warriors interestingly have one of the easiest remaining schedules in the NBA. Specifically, Golden State has the sixth-easiest remaining schedule in the league.

Currently sitting in 10th in the West standings, the Warriors have quite a bit of ground to make up. They're 1.5 games back of the 9th seed and five games back of the 5th seed. With less than 30 games left in the season, the Warriors don't have much time to right the ship but, at the same time, this is not a team, especially with the level of talent that they have on their roster, that is completely out of it just yet.

One of the bigger questions down the stretch revolves around whether the Warriors will be able to turn a corner on their first half of the season struggles. They did well last year in doing so. It remains to be seen if they could do the same this season. We shall find out soon enough.

But, make no mistake, the return of Paul from injury is only going to help this team down the stretch.