The drama on the other LA team isn’t going to take away from the fact that Chris Paul is back in the Clippers. He’s the last man standing from the legendary ‘Lob City’ era, which makes his farewell tour of the NBA so poetic. To hit fans with the nostalgia train, debutant sportscaster Blake Griffin will be on this tour through his new job at Amazon Prime, while Jamal Crawford is at NBC. Before this impending reunion on different sides of the mic, Griffin struck Lob City fans with emotions by reaching out to CP3. Probing those days of locker room squabbles were long over, Paul replied to his old teammate.

Amid his first training camp back in LA, Paul was directly asked about Griffin’s message. His answer would heal the Clippers nation right now.

“Man it’s dope. It’s really dope. I’m sure BG — well I hope BG get out to a game or something this year. DJ, we still talk all the time. Even tho JJ coach the Lakers I still talk to him all the time. A lot of guys. Matt Barnes, Jamal Crawford, all us are still well connected. So it’s really dope to still have that bond with them guys.”

As much as their chemistry shone in circus-like alley-oops, Paul and Griffin had their fair share of friction. If the media is to be believed, the Clippers’ upheaval in 2014 – from previous owner Donald Sterling’s scandals and ouster – and the disbandment of Lob City prevented these two from hashing out their differences. So there was almost nail-biting anticipation of whether CP3 would respond to Griffin.

CP3 just proved Lob City never disbanded. The point guard was the unspoken leader of the core when he played from 2011 to 2017, years that were touted as his prime when he came very close to MVP every year in LA. With Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, they created a Big 3 on this coast.

Things weren’t without their fair share of drama. Tensions between the teammates were rife. The arrival of Doc Rivers and his son apparently made the atmosphere worse. It would be the change in ownership that finally put an end to this era.

Chris Paul’s return to Los Angeles made his former teammate, Matt Barnes, nostalgic too. But about different circumstances.

Barnes revealed that tensions between CP3 and Griffin weren’t really that bad. “We were in our own way. Just too many egos, young acting. We thought we were going to be the Warriors right up until they won the championship. We just couldn’t get on the same page… we were all cool off the court.”

He also claimed that the issues with DeAndre Jordan were a bit inflated, and he was really just enjoying the stardom from Team USA and Lob City.

An emotional Lob City reunion is coming

The locker room atmosphere soured when their head coach and head of basketball operations, Doc Rivers brought his son, Austin in and paid him more than Lob City stars like Barnes and Crawford, as per the All the Smoke host. Apparently, there was too much damage to be undone by the time all the stars had left the team.

At least Barnes confirmed he and Paul hang out a lot. But it was unclear if Paul and Griffin remained that close.

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Griffin, who’s got some wild behind-the-scenes stories from his Clippers days, gave Paul a heartwarming welcome. “It’s been a pleasure to watch as a fan from before and then as a teammate and then as a fan and an opponent again. 20 years is crazy, but it makes sense watching the way he works, the way he carries himself, and the way he takes care of his body. He’s been a joy to watch and play with, so congratulations.”

Paul was shown this message during the Clippers media day and his reaction was spontaneous. “Appreciate that BG,” Paul said. “Miss you, man, miss you. That’s crazy.”

Paul has returned to almost similar nightmare in team operations. He’s been looked upon as the experienced veteran who will keep the team together. But this is also the oldest team in the NBA right now and it gives cynics fuel about their championship chances.

He gave us Lob City flashbacks when he told Lou Williams on The Underground Lounge, “the dopest part about our team is age or whatever, but it’s that we have so many different ways that we can play and we got so many guys who done did so many different things in this league. And that’s up to us to not just say it, but to do it.”

It’s a reminder of Jamal Crawford’s insane crossovers, Blake Griffin’s aerial moves, and a big like DeAndre Jordan worked beautifully under Chris Paul’s swift leadership.

We’re going to see Crawford and Griffin as analysts rooting for Paul this season. And maybe this time, with a new core, CP3 will finally get the Clippers over the hump.