Chris Paul and the L.A. Clippers are now in a position to advance to the Western Conference Finals, which Paul has never been in his career, so far. Leading the series 3-2, the Clippers travel back home where they are favorites to win in what is sure to be an entertaining game 6.
After a dominating performance against the San Antonio Spurs, averaging 22 points, 8 assists and nearly 5 rebounds, Paul has been spoken of highly and a lot of analysts now believe that the Clippers are the favorites to win the Western Conference. However, Paul did miss the first two games of the series with the Rockets because of an injury that occurred during the Conference Quarterfinals, against the Spurs. Even with an injury, Paul seems to be doing a good job in his time on the court and helping to lead his team to victory. Also, the play of Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan and Austin Rivers has helped enormously in his absence.
Since Paul joined the Clippers they have been the preseason favorites almost every year to win the Western Conference, or at least be in the conference finals game. A lot of analysts believe that they are an under-achieving group. People often said that Paul isn't a "superstar" or at "elite" status because he's failed to even reach the conference championship round; Blake Griffin is very gifted athletically but he has limited post moves and can't make any shot past 14 feet; DeAndre Jordan can only rebound. Well, it seems that with one more win, all of the talks about Chris Paul not being "elite" can be tossed out. This Clippers team could be seen as the best in the west, or even the league after two great playoff rounds. I know that the series could be far from over, but I believe that Paul's performance thus far through the playoffs has been more than elite and he could have the Clippers on the road to the Western Conference Championship round.
After defeating the defending NBA Champions (Spurs) in the Quarterfinals and playing through a serious leg injury, at a high level, does Paul still not qualify as elite?
