Rather than face a nosebleed seat at the AT&T Center, a friend and I decided to chill at my house and watch last night's Hornets @ Spurs game. During a commercial break, I posed to him a question:
Who deserves to start on the All-Star West more: Tony Parker or Chris Paul?
Of course he said Chris Paul like any good NBA fan would say. Looking at a stat sheet, it's hard to argue against that pick. Considering what Chris Paul has to work with, it's hard to argue against that pick. Watching last night's game, it's very easy to see why the pick is debatable. Purely from a play perspective Tony controlled his team and their tempo much better than Chris Paul, not to mention his composure. I tried to think of a highlight from the Hornets that didn't see Chris Paul throwing himself on the floor to try and get a foul. I could only think of the stint of two bad defensive moves on the Spurs that allowed Chris Paul to swish in 3-pointers followed by one great defensive play from George Hill that forced Chris Paul to jack up from beyond the arc. That shot went in, and it was amazing. More amazing to me though was Byron Scott's decision to bench Paul when the momentum was clearly in the Hornets favor. They edged closer to Spurs and chipped away at their lead. It looked like it was going to be a bad ending to a good game that would be the Spurs' last in San Antonio until late February. Almost a year ago to the date, the Hornets had it together and dismantled the Spurs. This year?
Byron Scott sat his star player and the Spurs got away. By the time CP3 came back in, the game was in the hands of Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs. Tony demanded the ball, rushed back to the other side of the court while the Hornets trotted back, and he faked out David West for a layup that sealed the game. Early on, Tony Parker played great defense and found open players. Tony barely glanced at a ref when he should have received a call in his favor. When he allowed CP to get into the lane, he shrugged it off and followed it by either finding the right man or being the right man to take the shot at the other end. What about Chris Paul?
He did his job. He scored 38 points (compared to Parker's measly 25 points), he hit those 3-pointers, he dished to his teammates (who were off the mark almost every time), and he was a little monster on the boards. He did it all for his team last night. He also argued calls that were good calls, got a technical raised against him for a situation that didn't involve him, and his teammates followed. He allowed Byron Scott to sit him when things were going good for the team, and his team floundered. He played his best last night.
So what's the problem? Where's the part you can argue? All the things Chris Paul does scream All-Star Point Guard. The part I'm debating is that I believe Tony Parker is the better player. He has better court awareness, better coaching, better teammates, and a better situation than Chris Paul. Tony Parker hasn't necessarily been spoiled, but he has been given the opportunities to become a better player. Tony Parker is a Finals MVP, while Chris Paul hasn't seen the Finals. I'm not going to be stupid and say Tony Parker is a better PG than Chris Paul, but Tony Parker has proven himself to be a better player than Chris Paul. In time I am sure this will become a great matchup, but right now, it's lopsided. Chris Paul clearly does what a Point Guard should do. However, I believe that Tony Parker would do what a great player does if he were in Chris Paul's shoes. I think Tony Parker is starting as the West PG if he's in Chris Paul's situation. I think Chris Paul is a future Final's MVP if he has Tim Duncan at his side and Manu flying around in his favor.
Here's the real question you should ask about last night's game:
"If Chris Paul wasn't benched in the 4th, would his team have still lost?"
This question could be the answer to the other.
I'm glad my friend and I chose to watch the game on TV, if only to get a resounding answer to the question I posed. Last night settled it for me. It doesn't matter who is better. It only matters who has the tools to take their team further and be a champion. That answer is quite clear.
The answer is Tony Parker.
rating: 4
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