The Warriors made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason when they traded rising star Jordan Poole, Ryan Rollins and two future picks to the Wizards for future Hall of Famer Chris Paul.
Paul and the Warriors have a well-chronicled history that dates back as far as his Clippers days. It intensified during the years when the Rockets were Golden State's toughest competition in the Western Conference.
In the past, Draymond Green had explicitly admitted that "I don't like CP at all." Head coach Steve Kerr told the NBA Today crew that "we've all hated him because we were competing, and he was so good," before adding, "and now that's our guy, and we love him."
The Warriors' core will have to get used to seeing Paul on their side as the 12-time All-Star continues his pursuit for an elusive NBA championship with his former enemies.
The floor general showed his support for his new head coach at Team USA training camp over the weekend, as Kerr prepares to lead the United States at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup at the end of August.
Look who stopped by USA FIBA World Cup Training Camp 👋 @usabasketball || #DubNation pic.twitter.com/rOvhrgE6Tw
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) August 7, 2023
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Later on, Kerr sat down with Sports Illustrated's Robin Lundberg and explained why the addition of Paul will be so important for the Warriors this upcoming season.
"Chris is such an incredible competitor. He's one of the all-time great competitors, in my mind," Kerr began. "He's so smart. He controls games. He's thinking three steps ahead all the time. He gets any shot he wants in the midrange.
"Our team last year needed another way to attack," Kerr continued. "We became a little too one-dimensional with Steph and high ball screens. We needed another playmaker to give us a different look."
According to NBA stats, Curry's 8.9 pick-and-roll possessions per game were tied with Heat forward Jimmy Butler for second-most among any player in the playoffs whose team made it out of the first round. He only trailed Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (10.8 pick-and-roll possessions per game).
"Chris, as we know, is one of the all-time great pick-and-roll players," Kerr said. "He'll know how to control the tempo. It's hugely important, especially in playoff games, to have guys like that. And they're hard to find.
"We're excited to add Chris to what we have and we'll see what we can do next year."
"Our team last year needed another way to attack. We became a little too one dimensional with Steph [Curry] in high ball screens. We needed another playmaker to give us a different look."
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 6, 2023
Steve Kerr on the Warriors adding Chris Paul.
(via @SInow)pic.twitter.com/0o5ae6zfjt
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Paul will give the Warriors another trusted ball-handler to take some of the workload off of Curry and Green. He's still one of the best midrange scorers in the NBA and, as Kerr said, he's considered to be one of the best pick-and-roll maestros to ever play the game.
It may take time for two ball-dominant guards like Curry and Paul to get comfortable and co-exist, but there is no doubt that the greatest shooter of all time can benefit from playing off the ball next to a playmaker like the Point God.
After hearing Coach Kerr's excitement about the different looks Paul can give Golden State on offense, there should be little doubt that he will find a way to make it work.
