In the Lane: May 7, 2008

There’s a guy named Paul running for President of the United States in November. Too bad his first name isn’t Chris…he might actually win.

Chris Paul turned 23 years old this week and instead of wondering how the best basketball player in the world celebrates a birthday I thought about having Hornets General Manager Jeff Bower check his point guard’s birth certificate. There is no way on earth the player who should have won the NBA’s MVP award could possibly be just 23 years of age. Hey, maybe I’ve stumbled onto something. That L.A. guy may be the MVP on earth…the LA guy can be the MVP on all the other planets.

Paul’s maturity on and off the court belies his age. He is as comfortable speaking in front of elementary school kids as he is retirees. He relates to wealthy sports owners as easily as rookie teammates.

And, he commands all of their respect.

Chris Paul never expected to be handed a starting job in the NBA because it wasn’t his first job ever. He grew up in a blue collar environment (pumping gas, changing oil and tires at his grandfather’s gas station) so it figures he would become one of the few blue collar MVP talents in modern day professional sports. He has handled personal tragedy (the murder of his grandfather during his senior year of high school and the sudden death of his college coach, Skip Prosser last summer) in remarkable fashion. He even honored both of his mentors on his new Jordan CP shoe that debuted this season.

I have this new idea for all of the national pundits who continue to dismiss (or is it just a flat out DIS-miss?) the Hornets as true championship contenders. My idea is for everyone to subscribe to my theory that betting against Chris Paul is a losing proposition. My idea is that he does more for his team than any player on any team in any sport today, accounting for at least 48% of the Hornets scoring (points + assists), and is the best defensive player (led the NBA in steals) on the floor. When GM’s seek that special franchise player to build around…they’re looking for Chris Paul. When GM’s dispense their scouts to find that special talent, that special leader, that special talent who can rally a locker room, a coaching staff, an entire community…they’re looking for Chris Paul.

Let’s stop the madness. CP3 is the best player in the NBA. The Hornets know it. The fans know it. Other teams in the NBA know it. My guess is by the end of this post season the rest of the working media will acknowledge it as well.

Those of us who were blessed enough to follow “Paul and the Buzz Men” during the regular season already knew what many of you are just now discovering: CP3 controls a game better than any player in the league.

Let’s look at Paul’s post season numbers:

So, his assists to turnover ratio are around 10:1 in the playoffs. That just doesn’t happen…not in a short series and certainly not in an extended post season. He has nine (9!) total postseason turnovers. For perspective, Tony Parker has eight… in the first two games of the semifinal series. Paul has been dominant at times, recording three 30+ point/10+ assist games. The record for one postseason is seven…held by a guy named Jordan.

The Hornets have now won 62 games this season (56 regular season + six post season). If they reach 72 they will be NBA champs…and everybody on earth who didn’t vote for the best candidate will be asking for a recount.