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121-63 might have taken some of the bloom off the rose.
Why Didn’t Chris Paul’s Amazing Season Get More Attention?
By Ben York
Dime
While writing my portion of the Chris Paul vs. Tony Parker debate, it really got me thinking – how in the was Chris Paul not reasonably considered for the 2008-09 Most Valuable Player?
The 08/09 Most Valuable Player was a three-horse race between LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. However, their play and respective team’s success unfortunately overshadowed Chris Paul’s; one of the best individual seasons by a point guard in the history of the NBA.
For example, on April 12th, Chris Paul posted a stat line of 31 points, 17 assists, 9 rebounds, 1 turnover and 73% from the field in 44 minutes against the Dallas Mavericks in a 102-92 victory. The crazy/amazing thing is that awe-inspiring games like this from Paul have started to become somewhat commonplace.
It’s not that I disagree with King James winning the award; not by a long shot. It’s just that I’m still having an extremely difficult time fathoming how CP3 received just 192 total votes (good for 5th place); only two of which were 1st place votes, just one 2nd place vote and only nine 3rd place votes.
Are you kidding me?
Chris Paul and the New Orleans Hornets certainly didn’t have a good playoff showing; that much is certain. After losing to the San Antonio Spurs in 7 games in 07/08, many picked the Hornets to rival the Lakers this past season for Western Conference supremacy. With the addition of recently crowned NBA Champion James Posey in the off-season, they quickly shored up their front line and added a bona fide defensive presence that previously hampered them in the playoffs. David West was effective down low, Tyson Chandler proved he could be a legitimate force in the paint and Peja Stojakovic was (and still is) as deadly a shooter as anyone in the League.
Unfortunately for the Hornets, they rarely got to see how special that lineup could be. Chandler missed virtually half the season due to an ankle injury, Peja was been hampered by back problems and missed close to 30 games, Posey was unreliable when healthy (which wasn’t often), reserve Morris Peterson missed almost 20 games from an ankle sprain and even David West missed some time. Essentially, a large amount of players on the Hornets were constantly injured and unable to play at some point last season for a considerable amount of time. Yet, the Hornets still managed to win 49 games - and 99% of the credit needs to go to Chris Paul.
Paul averaged career highs in ppg (23.0), field goal percentage (50%), steals per game (3.0), rebounds per game (5.5), free throws made per game (5.8), free throws attempted (6.7), free throw percentage (87%) and minutes played per game (38.5). More importantly, he accomplished this with anywhere from 1-4 of his fellow starters not being on the court the entire season.
For comparison’s sake, where would the other Western Conference playoff teams have been without 2-4 starters on a regular basis? Would the Lakers have won a championship without Pau Gasol and Derek Fisher consistently? Would the Nuggets have been the 2nd seed if Chauncey Billups and Nene Hilario were out? What about the Spurs minus Duncan and Ginobli? Dallas without Jason Terry and Jason Kidd?
Okay, that’s certainly subjective and based on predictions and opinions. While other teams in the West had a deep bench that could help fill the gaps when injuries occurred (like the Lakers, Rockets and Jazz), the Hornets supporting cast was certainly nothing to write home about. Sean Marks who barely saw any minutes during his time in Phoenix was a consistent member of the Hornets rotation. Hilton Armstrong only notched about 5 ppg while Devin Brown averaged about the same. Since New Orleans only scored about 96 points per game, when several players were out who averaged double digits in scoring (they only had four total), it was a huge loss.
As mentioned, Chris Paul averaged 23 points and 11 assists per game. When combined, on any given night, those stats feasibly accounted for over half of the Hornets total points. He also took away another several possessions per game from the opposing team with his defense and steals. Again, these numbers were attained in spite of an incredibly depleted Hornets squad around him.
Perhaps what should’ve propelled Paul into legitimate MVP consideration was the conference in which he tallied these unbelievable stats. There is no denying the West was a far superior conference than the East last season. For instance, the Phoenix Suns who missed playoffs, would’ve been a 5th seed in the East. The Hornets also played in, unquestionably, the toughest division in the entire NBA last season with the Spurs, Rockets and Mavericks. Not discounting LeBron or Wade’s accomplishments last year, but they did play in a more “winnable” atmosphere.
Again, it’s not that I feel he should’ve won the award, but why wasn’t Paul ever a front runner in the MVP race? He bested the numbers he put up the previous year which were good for second in MVP voting. When Steve Nash won his first MVP in 04/05, it was his absence that truly sealed the deal for him. The Suns were without Nash for several games in the middle of the season due to injury, and lost each one. Ultimately, that solidified him as the most important player for his team, of any team in the NBA. When Paul was out for several games this past year, the Hornets went 2-2 and had a horrific collapse against the Blazers. Upon his return, the Hornets won six in a row.
Without delving into the much-debated question about what defines an MVP candidate, you could make a solid case for Chris Paul having a better year than either LeBron James or D-Wade.
Paul 23ppg 11apg 5.5rpg 50%fg 3.2st 3.0to
James 28ppg 7apg 7.6rpg 48%fg 1.7st 3.0to
Wade 30ppg 7apg 5.0rpg 49%fg 2.2st 3.4to
The New Orleans Hornets realized the lack of support for Paul and even created a video highlighting his phenomenal year. In it, they stated that Paul led the league both in assists, steals and was eighth in scoring – something that has never been done before in the NBA. He became only the second player in NBA history to lead the League in assists and steals for two seasons in a row. This past season, Paul had four games where he had at least 25 points, 15 assists and four steals; the rest of the NBA had one of these games combined. Only one player in NBA history (Michael Ray Richardson) has ever tallied a better stat line than the one Paul did on January 14 with 33 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists, and seven steals. He reached the 2,500 assist plateau faster than anyone in NBA history other than Oscar Robertson. His six triple-doubles was second in the League. He set the NBA record for games with a steal at 108 straight. And as I mentioned above, this was one of the greatest seasons ever by a point guard in the NBA.
Admittedly, it’s difficult to argue against LeBron, Kobe and Wade being considered the front-runners last season with how fantastic they played and the leadership each exuded. Honestly, they deserve it. However, not having Chris Paul (at the very least) in that discussion was irresponsible and, frankly, still hard to comprehend.
*********************
The debate referred to.
Dime: Who’s Better: Chris Paul Or Tony Parker?
http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=134283
121-63 might have taken some of the bloom off the rose.
Kobe Bryant had NO business in the top 3 MVP talks last season.
That's what I was going to post. Being the leader of a team that lost by 58 sorta turns people off.
I was referring to the Mel_13 post, not the bull fever is spewing.
That was in the Playoffs though, so it has no meaning to the Regular season MVP.
Chris Paul should of been MVP, Hornets are the Kings without him.
Because he was the hunted and no longer the hunter. It frustrated him no end.
If the season encompasses the playoffs, then it deserves no attention because he played like and was whipped by Billups. He had a wonderful STATISTICAL regular season though.
How can anyone besides a homer Laker fan say that Kobe had a "better" season than Chris Paul last year?
Mvp Award, eh?
a big f'in raspberry goes rightch here!
Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Chris Paul is a ass people don't like.
His play in the regular season definitely warranted more recognition and praise.
Yeah, you and many ppl on ST think that. Universely, he's seen as a clean cut class act, which he is.
Call me a homer, I don't give a ; What Paul does for the city of New Orleans is incomparable(except for Lebron in Cleveland).
CP3 is not a class act during game. Duncan was pissed at him and told him to GTFO, i've never seen duncan angry toward another player last year.
Duncan said "Calm the down." I wouldn't say he was angry though. It takes more than that for Duncan to actually express anger.
Why should he be during games. On the court, he's a cut-throat compe or, and wants to win at any costs; Something Spurs fans should understand.
He's the most dominant 6-footer in a while, and he is defended very roughly by some teams(a la Jordan vs. the Bad Boy Pistons). The he gives to others is not even near being close to the he gets from others. When a person of his size is picking your team apart, you put your size to use work and make it a contact sport. If you were Paul and treated like he is on the court by opponents, you would be a on the court to the other team as well....
Others use their size to punish Paul. People about the cheap shot Paul gave to Hodge in college(which was WRONG!), but I see people bump and elbow Paul all the time when I go to games(when the refs aren't looking). If you were the smallest superstar in the league; opponents will use the size disadvantage everytime( seeing how it is his biggest "weakness"). I'm very surprised a coach hasn't sent a goon in to hurt him yet.
I'm sure many asshole fans in here want to see him get hurt; what does that say about the judges(ppl who call him a )?
thanks 228, imo he did look angry. I like angry TimDuncan said "Calm the down." I wouldn't say he was angry though. It takes more than that for Duncan to actually express anger.
hornets1, paul seems like a nice guy off the court, that's not the point. Like Jamestone said he'd get more praise and more recognition if he had another behaviour on the court.
I agree. But take that tenacity and fire out of him, and he becomes a good PG, not an incredible one.
The reason I used to like KG more than Duncan was KG's intensity and passion. But I then realized that duncan's calm demeanor didn't effect his game. Once a lifetime does a player like that come along......
He had the Duncan glare going on, I guess that looks angry for him.thanks 228, imo he did look angry. I like angry Tim
Angry Duncan is good. When he really does get pissed on the court it usually bodes well for us.
Let me guess: that incredible stat line was ac ulated at home. Right? He probably really had 5 rebs and 11 assists, and got an assist (pun intended) from the NoLa scorer.
Actually, I'm a fan of CP3. I like him. But I'm coming from an objective perspective. I think many people thinking he's a ass. And I wasn't discrediting his season or his numbers. I was merely suggesting why Chris might not have gotten more recognition last season.
No the Lakers do NOT make the playoffs in the WEST without Kobe. Cmon, Mavs/Hornets/Jazz/Suns are better than the Lakers when Kobe is taken out of the equation. The presence of Kobe is worth about 20-25 wins, and that's the difference between 1st and 9th.
I would agree they'd make the playoffs in the East, but even then it would be as a 5-8 seed and definite 1st round fodder.
Also, Paul is not a class act.
Nice logic there...see 2007.If the season encompasses the playoffs, then it deserves no attention because he played like and was whipped by Billups. He had a wonderful STATISTICAL regular season though.
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