Chris Paul is Ready for the Season

Ken Berger conducted an interview with former Wake Forest and current Los Angeles Clippers star Chris Paul to broach on certain topics before the upcoming NBA season.

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Here some things to note:

1.Chris Paul likes Steve Balmer

It seems almost impossible that it would be otherwise, since the predecessor to Balmer was Donald Sterling. However Paul did not go into one of the biggest aspects of Ballmer’s purchase of the Clippers. Now that the miserly Sterling is no longer in charge, the Clippers cannot point their fingers at the owners box when things go wrong. They are now a big market franchise with full capability to exploit that fact. If the Clippers do not win now, the fault can only rest at the feet of Doc riverxs and the players.

2.Paul, the union president, seemed strangely or strategically detached from the controversies regarding the current contract structure.

Paul likes using the word dialogue as his preferred modus operandi. He however avoided Berger’s questions about Kobe Bryant’s contract comments and how fans feel about player salaries. It’s always hard to pin down what NBA players want. Bryant feels that it is not his job to build a team with good salary structure, but also wants to win championships. In Kobe’s defense, he has five rings and somebody made that happen. The two concepts do seem to be at odds with each other. How much is Ray Allen worth, right now? More than the minimum, right?

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The fan issue is one that I am surprised that Paul dodged. We fans believe we pay too much for all of it, unless we are rich enough to be insulated from price increases. Tim Duncan takes less and is applauded for it. The Spurs remain competitive because of that. So fans do want stars to take less if it brings in more stars to win games.

3.Paul is still feeling Game 5 against the Thunder

This one I have mixed feelings about. On the one hand, I think Paul will play better if he is motivated. On the other hand, I do not think that Chris Paul should dwell on game 5. Maybe I spent too much time on Bob McKillop yesterday.

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