Chris Paul Rings

Winning the NBA championship is every basketball player’s aspiration and the league already has many multi-championship winners who made their mark in the sport. Although it is a team game, some players made their name bigger than their respective teams and became the face of the NBA. Still, players like Chris Paul, Allen Iverson, Charles Barkley, and other Hall of Famers, who missed out on the NBA championships remind us that it's the team who wins the title – despite having enormous talent within that specific player.

If we talk about Chris Paul, he already has achieved many individual accolades that even some of the NBA champion stars have failed to win. The 12-time All-star led the league in assists 5 times, highlighting his playmaking abilities. Also with his ball-handling prowess, Chris Paul led in steals for 6 seasons, cementing his position as a high-IQ player and reader of the game. Sadly after 18 high-performing seasons in the NBA; Paul missed out on the most coveted award – that is the NBA championship.

Chris Paul Rings

Chris Paul is yet to win an NBA championship. He has made it to the NBA finals once with the Phoenix Suns in 2021. Paul hardly cleared the Conference Semi’s round, while tasting defeat in the Conference Finals once while playing for the Houston Rockets in 2019. Overall, the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame inductee and member of the NBA’s 75th-anniversary team is yet to win any ring in the NBA.

Chris Paul Teams

As mentioned earlier, basketball is a team game, where great players like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James also rely on their respective teammates to win multiple championships. In the case of Chris Paul, who played in 5 different teams in his career, he had high-performing teammates, but couldn’t deliver in the final moments to snatch a win.

Let us go through Chris Paul’s period in the NBA -

1. New Orleans Hornets (2005-2011)

Drafted as the 4th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft, Chris Paul changed the identity of the New Orleans Hornets – now known as the Pelicans team. Leading all rookies in total points, assists, steals, and double-doubles, Paul won the Rookie of the Year award, missing unanimous selection by just one vote. He was only the second rookie in NBA history to lead the league in total steals.

After a solid Rookie year, Paul established himself as a dependent playmaker with likes of David West, Tyson Chandler, and Peja Stojakovic benefitting from his game. Improving every season with the Hornets team, Paul made it to 3 postseasons during his 6-season stay in New Orleans. The farthest Paul made with the Hornets team was Conference Semi in 2008.

Paul still holds the record as Pelican’s all-time leader in assists and steals, while ranking third in their scoring charts.

2. Los Angeles Clippers (2011-2017)

After a controversial failed trade to the LA Lakers team, Chris Paul landed with city Rivals LA Clippers in 2011. He had two of the best and emerging stars in DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin as teammates in the Clippers team with a potent support cast. In his other 6-season stay, Paul, under champion Coach Doc Rivers made the Clippers “Lob City” – winning the playoff berth every season.

“Point God” as famously known, won the All-Star MVP award, multiple All-NBA team selections, and even set the franchise record for All-time leader in assists. He stands second in steals in franchise record books while putting up a franchise-best 26.3 efficiency rating. Still after a series of disappointing exits from the playoffs, Chris Paul moved to the next superteam in search of an NBA championship.

3. Houston Rockets (2017-2019)

After dictating the play for 12 seasons and with two different franchises, Chris Paul chose to play with another superstar guard James Harden in Houston. The triple-double king Harden found the perfect ball-handling partner to lessen the burden and focus more on shooting. Along with Harden, Gordon, and Capela, Chris Paul formed a powerful team, destined to win a championship.

But after a 2-season stay and injuries in playoffs, Chris Paul could see his team not advancing beyond the Conference Finals and immediately got traded in a mega package for Russell Westbrook. Paul averaged a respectable 17 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game for the Rockets in a total of 116 games played.

4. Oklahoma City Thunders (2019-2020)

Playing for the rebuilding OKC was a bit of a downgrade for a player like Chris Paul, but he gave his 100% for the team. In his sole season with the team, Chis Paul maintained his average of 18 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds for the OKC team. His performances alongside young talents including Shai Gilgious-Alexander put the team in the playoff picture, where they lost in the hard-fought 7-game first round.

5. Phoenix Suns (2020-2022)

After the small stop in rebuilding the team, Chris Paul once again became a member of the superteam including young stars like Deandre Ayton and Devin Booker. They made it to the NBA finals in 2021 but lost to Giannis Antetokounmpo’s master class and the Milwaukee Bucks’ all-around team. With the addition of Kevin Durant in 2023, the Suns’ were one of the favorites to win the title, but sadly lack of depth cost them a spot in the Conference Finals.

6. Golden State Warriors (2023-current)

Chris Paul is now a member of multiple championship teams – Golden State Warriors, and it would be interesting to watch how Paul’s game would help Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and the team to win their 5th title and Chris Paul’s 1st championship in coming days.