On Saturday, October 7, Chris Paul made his Golden State Warriors debut. The 37-year-old guard joined the franchise earlier this summer as part of the deal that sent Jordan Poole to the Washington Wizards. Paul has been a hot topic of conversation since the trade was made.
However, with preseason underway and Paul donning a Warriors jersey, those hot topics faded away, and his on-court performance was all that mattered. When speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle following Golden State’s preseason victory, Paul discussed his thoughts on playing in front of the Warriors fanbase for the first time since becoming part of the team.
Buy Warriors Tickets“Man, it was exciting,” Paul said. “I’ve been on the other side of a lot of crazy games (against the Warriors). It was wild to hear (the fans) cheering for me. Since Day 1, since I got here, since the trade happened, it was my first time being around the fans. But the staff, the guys on the team, they couldn’t have been more welcoming.”
Paul hopes his relationship with the fanbase goes from strength to strength over the coming season. Neither side has any love lost following years of competitive rivalries. It will also be interesting to see whether Paul retains his starting role within the rotation once Draymond Green returns from injury and how he adapts to playing in Steve Kerr’s system.
Nevertheless, Paul’s debut was encouraging. The veteran guard controlled the pace, made multiple smart reads, and appeared to be on the same wavelength as Steph Curry. Golden State now has a big gap until their next preseason game, which will take place on Friday, October 13, where they will once against face the Lakers.
