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The Raptors released Chris Paul after the Clippers traded him and within a short period he announced his retirement, after 21 years he leaves as the last true point guard in the NBA. Those who entered the NBA after 2005 (Paul’s first year) were more or less “combo guards. They were guys who looked for their shot first and to distribute the ball secondly, this should not be considered a criticism it was just the evolution of the game. Paul ranks second to John Stockton in both assists and steals, making him one of the NBA’s all-time leaders in these categories. I’d bet money you didn’t realize what I discovered while completing this narrative.

Paul was a reliable scorer during the regular season when needed (16.8 ppg) however during the playoffs he raised his scoring to 20 points a game. Although he retires without a championship it’s my belief a key contributing factor was the trade that didn’t occur. Some are aware he was traded to the Lakers in 2011 however David Stern then commissioner voided the trade “In the best interest of the NBA.” Imagine this, a backcourt of Paul at the point and Kobe Bryant as the shooting guard. A few might question the number of teams Paul’s played for over the course of his career…I don’t believe that is important. The focus should be strictly on his on-court performance, after a brilliant NBA career the next stop for CP3 is the Naismith Hall of Fame in Springfield MA.

Think about this

For the most part Thunder GM Sam Presti has been in the background however he’s the primary reason the Thunder won an NBA championship last season. Although none of the three are currently with the Thunder he proved early he was astute at analyzing and drafting talent that aided in the growth of the Thunder. At the time they were the Seattle Sonics the 30-year old Presti was responsible for drafting Kevin Durant, later when the team moved to OKC naturally Durant moved with the team. Presti continued his astute work adding Russell Westbrook and James Harden including them with this talented roster he was building. Despite assembling this collection of talent all are now grown, what is most interesting all have worn the jersey of multiple teams. Keep this in perspective this is not in any order just the number of teams each has played for, we begin with Kevin Durant:

Kevin Durant-Sonics/Thunder, Warriors, Nets, Suns and Rockets

James Harden-Thunder, Rockets, Nets, Sixers, Clippers and Cavs

Russell Westbrook-Thunder, Kings, Nuggets, Clippers, Lakers, Wizards and Rockets

Although Durant has worn 6 jerseys he’s played for 5 NBA teams, Harden will have played for 6 teams. The clear leader is Westbrook having filed 7 changes of address during his career. The movement of these 3 consists of trades but for the most part they are free agent moves, what do you think? Is it the time we find ourselves in, unless that player was a journeyman appearing in three different team jerseys might have been a significant number.

Blue Blood

The headline above is not heard much in this age and perhaps there is a basis why. A quick background look, Blue Blood programs were those which dominated the college basketball landscape. The best talent in the nation (and world) generally gravitated to these schools. Who are these schools, depends on who you hold the conversation with, in most instances. In most of those discussions we might have been centered around Kentucky, UCLA, Indiana, Kansas and North Carolina. The landscape has changed as I’ve often stated, Name, Image & Likeness, the transfer portal plus One n Done.

All those elements have severely impacted the college basketball game we see that exist in the present day. Those schools above were given the title of Blue Blood because annually they contended for the NCAA championship. We might ask the question when did any of the above schools last win a championship? 1987 was the last year Indiana won, as for the others Kentucky (2012), UCLA (1995), Kansas (2022) and North Carolina (2017) are the most recent winners. UConn won championships in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2023 and 2024. If the term Blue Blood remains in common usage today shouldn’t UConn be included along with the others as well?

It’s his team now

The headline might say, “who am I referring to and I am pleased to respond.” It’s Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks, notice I did not begin the sentence with ‘rookie,’ it’s always been my belief playing into January freshman players are no longer rookies. The trade deadline moves, especially trading AD, provides us proof the Mavs intend to build the team around Flagg. In one instance I don’t mind being proven wrong and a reminder of what I said very early in the season. It went something similar to this, “Don’t expect Flagg to come in and lead the team in scoring, he will do all those things required to improve the team.”

If we look at the scoring aspect along Flaggs’ last four games have seen him exceed 30 points with a high of 49 points against the Hornets. The downside to this scoring burst and other aspects of his game have not led to victories for the Mavs. As for the team with AD now traded to the Wizards that leaves the veteran Kyrie Irving on the injured list. There is a question whether he returns this season or the following. Time has taken its toll on him, he will have his 33rd birthday in March and would be 34 years of age before the close of the 2026-27 season. Those arriving from the Wizards in the AD trade will add depth and hopefully improved play the balance of this season and into the future. The 2026 draft position is yet to be decided however it would appear the Mavs will possibly have pick 7-10.