The Golden State Warriors surprised plenty of people when they decided to trade for — and then hold onto — Chris Paul, especially considering they already had Stephen Curry there.
It’s not that one is better than the other or that they can’t coexist. But it’s quite difficult to envision him being in the same starting lineup with Curry and Klay Thompson at this point in his career.
That’s why former NBA star Paul Pierce thinks it’s going to be a struggle for Paul in the Bay area, as he’ll have to embrace a lesser role as a bench player for the first time in his career.
Paul Pierce Says Chris Paul Will Struggle In The Bay
“Let me tell you something, this is gonna be one of the toughest years of Chris’s career,” Pierce said. “Just mentally. You know why? Your whole career, you’re a starter; you got the ball in your hands.”
“Now, you gotta make the adjustment mentally to coming off the bench,” Pierce continued. “So now that’s a different type of preparation. You might come in off the bench and you don’t really got a lot of time to warm up. As an older player, that’s difficult.”
Most players come to a point where they’re no longer starters, and Paul may have reached it already. On the flip side, this will likely be his final and biggest opportunity to win an NBA championship, but it’ll be up to him to embrace that new role or not.
