He's not quite gone yet, but the prospect of Chris Paul leaving the Phoenix Suns is well and truly on the table. He might be 38 and coming off the back of a season which indicated even further decline for a man already well past his prime, but Paul is still a player who plenty of teams would be happy to add to their roster, and the Philadelphia 76ers will likely be one of them. These are three reasons why.
1. If James Harden leaves, a hole needs to be filled
A lot of Chris Paul's suitability for the Sixers is, of course, contingent on whether James Harden leaves or not. Whether he does or not is a story for another day, but a report which emerged after they were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals suggests it's far more likely than not.
If he does, it obviously leaves a hefty old hole in the Sixers' backcourt. Harden's usage in Philly wasn't anything like what it was back in his MVP days in Houston, but the ball still spent plenty of times in his hands and with him gone, somebody will need to pick up the slack.
Chris Paul could be the ideal person to do that. The Sixers are already in contention mode, so his age isn't an issue beyond what it allows him to do on the floor next year. He probably won't be as ball-dominant as Harden was and won't score as much, but he's still capable of getting buckets when his team needs it, and more importantly would provide a very high IQ ball-handler for the Sixers to place alongside Joel Embiid – which brings us to point #2.
2. The Chris Paul/Joel Embiid chemistry could be electric
As the reigning MVP, Joel Embiid is clearly the focal point of this team, whether it's James Harden, Chris Paul or somebody else playing next to him. The myriad of ways in which he can score means he's capable of getting his own shot whenever he wants it, but as Harden showed, a good point guard alongside him is worth its weight in gold. The chemistry those two displayed was at times underrated throughout the season, with their pick and roll combination one of the more difficult to stop in the league.
Imagine what he could do with one of the highest IQ point guards in league history. At 38, Paul is not going to be providing too many plays for the highlight reel himself, but he's more than capable of setting them up. Joel Embiid would be a major beneficiary of his ability to read defense; whether he rolls or pops Paul will get him the shot he wants, while Paul's own continued ability to hit his patented elbow jumper would open up more space for the MVP.
3. Chris Paul would enable Tyrese Maxey to play the role to which he's best suited
Tyrese Maxey has come on in leaps and bounds over his three years in the NBA, and his 2022-23 season was his best in the league with averages of 20.3 points (shooting 48.1% from the field and 43.4% from long range) and 3.5 assists this season. But while he's a super talented scorer, that's where his strength lies. He's a reasonably capable creator at times, but he is a two-guard who is better suited scoring and creating in transition, and scoring in the half-court.
If Harden leaves and the Sixers aren't able to find a suitable point guard to work with Embiid, it would create further responsibility for Maxey from a ball-handling and creation point of view. Maybe he would demonstrate significant improvement in this area – he is only 22 after all – but more likely it would result in a decrease in efficiency and certainly wouldn't work with Embiid as well as a player like Harden or Paul can.
If the Sixers bring in Chris Paul, it would enable Maxey to continue to develop in the kind of role which he played last season – a role for which he is ideally suited.
Assuming Chris Paul does end up on the table this offseason, there will be a number of teams that will be eager to sign the 12-time All-Star. If James Harden leaves as expected, the Philadelphia 76ers will likely be one of them. He has the capacity to bring out the best in both Embiid and Maxey, and will help them to remain in the upper echelons of the Eastern Conference – at least in the short-term.
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