Tonight, Chris Paul made a highly anticipated return as an LA Clipper, which officially cemented his second stint with the franchise. He did well in the preseason, but his first game of the regular season was of the unexpected, showing that relying on him, at 40 years old, could be a mistake.
Although there is plenty of excitement left in the tank for Friday's home contest against the Phoenix Suns, Paul's road debut this season was only for 15 minutes, where he logged four points and four assists, shooting 1-5 from the floor and 1-4 from three behind James Harden.
One game on a new team with a head coach he has never been led by should not change Paul's role for the short term, but soon enough, if these types of nights are repeated, Tyronn Lue will be forced to have a conversation regarding a role change with the veteran point guard.
The best way to use Chris Paul is through his voice and experience
Just as Chris Paul entered the game, near the end of the first quarter, the recently reunited LA Clipper received a nice ovation on the road. Of course, many Clipper fans were in attendance, but it was clear that even fans of the Utah Jazz were excited to see him in red, white, and blue, more than any other team colors.
On the contrary, Lue chose to DNP Bogdan Bogdanovic and play Chris Paul, who was inefficient and a non-factor in the playmaking game. LA could have done better if their roles were reversed, as Bogdanovic's scoring was needed, while the 12-time All-Star would have impacted the game through other parts of his skillset.
In support of this, Paul was seen multiple times being vocal with his teammates on the court and on the sidelines. This style of contribution ultimately helps create more scoring opportunities, clean up defensive mistakes, and keep everyone on the same page based on where the team is during the game, and where they would like to be at the end.
That said, the Clippers lost atrociously tonight, 129-108. But the optimistic side of suffering a tough loss is the amount of room for improvement. Everyone, including Paul, will have a list of tasks to do tomorrow and early Friday morning, as they will be at home during the evening, facing the immensely tweaked Phoenix Suns, whose biggest additions were Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks.