Chris Paul Lovefest

It's been too long since I told the world how incredibly awesome Chris Paul is so let me take a few minutes to do that now.

I have a serious man crush on Chris Paul. He is the best point guard in the League and possible the best player too. (He should have won the MVP this year but the voting members of the media were too busy apologizing to Kobe for not giving him the award in past years... but I digress.) I first realized he was special in college when he avoided a defender while sprinting down the open floor with a through-the-legs dribble and never even broke stride. I hit the gym the next day and consider myself a decent dribbler but I couldn't even come close to replicating the move at full speed. Paul was drafted by the Hornets in 2005 but he was never on TV so my mancrush on him somewhat faded.

Fast forward to the 2007-08 season. It's November and I'm already debating whether or not I should seek help for a clinical addiction to NBA League Pass. (I just can't explain to my coworkers anymore that my bleary eyes in the morning aren't a result of drinking or staying up all night getting laid, but rather, because I stayed up to watch Clippers-Grizzlies because I like Kyle Lowery's game or because Hawks-Kings was "way more exciting than you might have imagined".) And then I rediscovered the joy that is watching Chris Paul ball.
Why is he so good? First, The Standard has unbelievable hand eye coordination in a league full of guys who are absurdly coordinated. He stands 6 feet even but he averages 4.5 boards a game (and 2.3 steals per game) for his career because he reacts to the ball as fast as anyone I have ever seen. If the ball is on the ground and Chris Paul is in the mix, he will come up with it. His vision is rivaled by only a few others in the League (Nash and Kidd come to mind) but, at this stage in their respective careers, Paul gets to the rim better than both of them. When he wants, he can attack the rim as well as anyone in the league. He doesn't have a wide almost-but-not-quite-a-carry crossover like Iverson but he still can cut people with the best of them. Finally, Paul is a leader. I know I'm biased but he just exudes leadership on the floor to the point where other comparable talents (LeBron, Kobe, Melo) should really be taking notes. He might be hard on his teammates but he doesn't embarrass them. I think this motivates more than the eye rolls and exasperated shrugs of some other aforementioned superstars. Ok, enough Chris Paul love for now... there will no doubt be more coming but I just had to get my fix for the summer.

Chris Paul Mix - watch the play that starts at around the 46 second mark... the look-off pass is just straight nasty.

Chris Paul's tribute to his grandfather - moving piece about his late grandfather.

Crossover of the Day - this series of moves was so nasty that even the goaltending couldn't keep it off the highlight reel. That said, I like the move by Kenyon Martin to blatantly goaltend the shot... if your teammate gets cut up, it's your duty to keep him off someone's youtube mix be it by fouling or goaltending.

Lamar Odom Blooper - Lamar again tries to play while stoned and it doesn't work out too well.