The Floor General

Happy birthday, CP3.  Rohan with At the Hive has the full set of articles here.

The value of a true point guard is hard to measure.

They are floor generals that dictate the pace of the game as well as the play of their team. There isn’t a quantifiable way to measure those statistics.

Sure, you can look at assist-to-turnover ratios or John Hollinger’s PER statistic. But statistics can only tell you so much. Do you find it peculiar that Ricky Davis is more valuable to a fantasy team than Stephen Jackson? Or that some fantasy owners may select Al Jefferson over Tim Duncan?

How do you measure being the unquestioned leader of the New Orleans Hornets? What does it say about a player when he is one of the vocal leaders on the USA Senior National Team?

When looking at a box score, it’s difficult to determine which player left their imprint on the game.

There’s a reason why people say “oh, I wish I saw Oscar Robertson play,” or “man, Pete Maravich’s game would’ve been great to watch.” If you want to see their statistics, they’re all there for you. Millions of numbers are at your fingertips.

Chris Paul’s season has been more than numbers and it’s been a joy to watch.

I’ve seen him give Julian Wright pointers on when to cut to the ball. I’ve seen him instruct Jannero Pargo to clear out the strong-side for David West.

I’ve seen Paul look up court immediately after a defensive board and hurl it 30 feet. I’ve seen him test opposing defenses with his dribble and then consequently pick it apart.

This has been a great season for Chris Paul, certainly one for the record books.

But more importantly, I’m glad I’ve seen it.