NBA Sixth Man of the Year Power Rankings: Austin Reaves rises, Malik Monk falls
By Austin McGee
4. Chris Paul
Last week's rank: 5
Chris Paul has been starting as of late for the Golden State Warriors, albeit not too much team success. With Paul in the opening unit, the Warriors went 1-4, only defeating the Houston Rockets.
Two nights ago, against the San Antonio Spurs, the Warriors won the contest 118-112. Coming off the bench, Paul recorded a plus/minus of plus-16, the best amongst all Warriors players.
In that contest, he only scored five points. But, he added five rebounds and 10 assists. His second double-digit assist game as a reserve. And as always, Paul played a clean game. He only recorded one turnover in 29 minutes off the bench.
Unlike Reaves, Paul has played much better in a starting role. All counting statistics and percentages decrease when the 38-year-old comes off the bench. Nevertheless, Golden State is much better when Paul orchestrates the second unit.
When Paul starts, his plus/minus is -1.8. When he comes off the bench, his plus/minus skyrockets to a +11.1.
Throughout the course of his career, Paul shoots 47.1 percent from the floor and 36.9 percent from three. It's only a matter of time before his shooting splits round out to form.
Off the bench, CP3 is shooting 37.8 percent from the field and 21.9 percent from 3-point range. Paul's percentages will be closely monitored for these rankings. If he improves, his spot might be higher in a week.