Setback for Warriors’ Chris Paul Departed From Golden State Warriors today Following-NBA..
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Golden State Warriors guard Chris Paul isn’t retiring, but has uncertain future
The 12-time All-Star was a key leader as a reserve, but his return to the Bay Area hinges on $30 million non-guaranteed year
opportunity.”
If the Warriors’ goal is to save money on salaries, keeping Paul on the team at a $30 million salary could be counterproductive. But in terms of his value to the Warriors, coach Steve Kerr and several players — Curry, Green, Kuminga and rookie Brandin Podziemski — raved about Paul.
Kerr was impressed by Paul’s leadership, mentoring of young players and professionalism after coming off the bench for the first time in his career. Kerr, who has coached the Warriors for 10 seasons and played in the NBA for 15 seasons, added that Paul was one of “the greatest pros” he has been around.
“It is a difficult situation for him that he handled beautifully,” Kerr said. “He’s always been the starting point guard for his team. But you look at our team, we’re pretty small and even though he’s one of our best players — if we want to throw our best players out there, and he’s one of them — you start adding up Chris, Steph, Klay. It’s not the ideal roster for [Paul], but he was fantastic for us because he became our backup point guard. As I’ve said many times, our non-starter minutes were the best they’ve ever been because of Chris’ leadership …
“But the way he handled it this year was so professional. [Paul is] such a great mentor for the younger guys, one of the greatest pros I’ve ever been around … just his approach and his attitude and his sacrifice. I love coaching Chris and I really hope we bring him back next year. There is a long offseason. We’ve got to see how it all plays out.”
Curry said he enjoyed finally playing with Paul and hopes that his “friend” will be back in San Francisco. The two-time MVP and Paul, both North Carolina natives, went from Western Conference rivals when Paul was with the LA Clippers and Houston Rockets to teammates this season.
“He’s a professional who just goes about everything the right way,” Curry told Andscape. “He’s a hoop head that is always fun to play with. You can always talk basketball and figure it out. I appreciated playing against him in his prime. I always loved being in the same locker room [as him] because I was built like that.
“As a friend, he’s been my guy from day one. We had a little enemy situation. Just understanding how he approaches everything. He was fun to play with all year long.”
