In a remarkable turn of events, Chris Paul goes off bench, the seasoned point guard stepped off the bench for the very first time in his NBA career. This unprecedented move had not occurred since his sophomore season at Wake Forest in 2004.
Chris Paul Goes Off Bench 1st time in his 1,366th NBA Game
The momentous change transpired during the Golden State game in Houston on a Sunday, where Paul entered the game as a substitute with 6:58 remaining in the first quarter. Although he had started the first two games of the season, he found himself out of the starting lineup on that particular Sunday due to the return of Draymond Green from an ankle injury.
To put this achievement in context, since the NBA began keeping records of games started in 1982, no player had matched Paul’s feat of starting every game until this remarkable moment. This question of whether Paul would continue to start or not had been a subject of debate ever since he joined the Warriors. Paul expressed his desire to start, while Warriors coach Steve Kerr viewed Golden State as a team with six starters.
At the age of 38, Paul, the third-oldest player in the NBA this season (only behind LeBron James and P.J. Tucker), had already demonstrated his skills in the first two games of the season for Golden State, amassing 24 points and 21 assists. Steve Kerr praised Paul’s basketball intelligence, his ability to make critical plays, and maintain ball possession, and his remarkable adaptability.
With Paul’s extraordinary streak now at an end, Damian Lillard of the Milwaukee Bucks, playing in his 833rd career game on that Sunday night, held the record for the most consecutive starts among active players without ever appearing as a reserve. Following closely behind was Dallas’ Kyrie Irving with 748 NBA starts. It’s important to note that these statistics encompass games played in the NBA’s play-in tournament as well.
Even basketball legends such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Tim Duncan, Karl Malone, Shaquille O’Neal, and Michael Jordan had, on rare occasions, come off the bench during their illustrious careers. The last time Chris Paul did not start a game that counted was during his college years on December 13, 2004, when he was briefly benched for being slightly late for the team bus. From that moment onwards, he commenced every game throughout his college and 19-year NBA career until this recent development.
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