Chris Paul poised to start alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson according to NBA insider: "This isn't an opinion, just what I'm hearing"

Since the Golden State Warriors acquired Chris Paul in a trade with the Washington Wizards, questions surrounding the veteran guard role have swirled.

Throughout his career, Paul has been a starter. With the Warriors, the veteran could potentially be coming off the bench.

However, Andscape's Marc Spears, who was speaking on an episode of Yahoo Sport's "Ball Don't Lie" podcast, shared that he's hearing rumblings that Paul could be a start with Golden State, at least to begin the season.

If Steve Kerr is to give Paul a starting role, it would likely mean the Warriors opening lineup would be incredibly small and guard-heavy:

"I do expect him to star. And I think it's like five-minute spurts," Spears said. "I don't know that they really want his minutes to be high, but I think they're gonna try it.

"I could be wrong, but that's the jist I'm getting. This isn't an opinion, that he's expected to start. He's never not started in his career."

Regardless of whether Paul starts for the Warriors or comes off the bench, it's easy to see how his presence can help elevate his team to a new level.

Spears added his thoughts on Paul's fit with the Warriors and why it could make sense from a team standpoint:

"I'm gonna put some respect on his name. Chris Paul is a future Hall of Famer. His basketball IQ is among the greatest of all time, if not the greatest.

"You put him and Draymond [Green] on the floor together, IQ-wise, and it's not like he has to carry the team, he has to complement the team. I think he can do really well there."

Golden State doesn't possess a particularly "big" team this year. The Warriors' tallest players are Dario Saric and rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis. As such, leaning into a small-ball starting five could give the Warriors their best chance of success.

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Steve Kerr hasn't made any decisions on Paul's role, yet

When speaking to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps during the second day of Team USA’s practice before the 2023 FIBA World Cup began, Steve Kerr was asked whether Chris Paul would be a starter for the Golden State Warriors:

“I think that’ll be a case where you get three weeks of training camp before that first game,” Kerr said “We’ll just look at all kinds of different combinations. …The main thing is we know all those guys are going to play a lot of minutes. …He is one of the great competitors in the game.

"He’s one of the great point guards of all time. I think he’s a great addition for us, because of his ability to control games, control tempo, take care of the ball.”

Kerr's comments make sense as Paul hasn't trained with his new teammates yet. The Warriors haven't had a chance to begin putting plans into place for how they intend to utilize Paul's skillset or to see him on the court alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.

Nevertheless, Paul's addition gives Golden State an elite guard rotation and can help propel them toward another NBA championship — if Paul can figure out how to mesh with his new surroundings and how to excel in Golden State's movement-heavy system.