It’s a hard choice to make between the 10s era Chris Paul and Stephen Curry. The two players are unarguably among the best point guards the game witnessed in the last two decades. But the ex-NBA star Matt Barnes had to pick one of the two as his choice for the point guard position.
Appearing on an episode of ‘Sloane Knows’, the 2017 NBA champion picked his starting five from his former teammates. He chose Chris over Steph because he spent more time playing with the ex-LA Clippers star. “My point guard, I play with Steve Nash, Chris Paul, Baron Davis. I play with Steph, but I don’t really count Steph Curry because I only play with him for half a season,” Matt Barnes stated. However, he mentioned Curry to be an incredible player.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
For the remaining four players, Matt Barnes chose Kobe Bryant as his shooting guard and Peja Stojakovic as his small forward. For the position of power forward, Barnes let fans decide between Chris Webber and Blake Griffin. Barnes believes, from his former teammates, the best center for his playing five would be Shaquille O’Neal.
While all other options may go down well with the fans as they did not involve any comparison, choosing Chris Paul over Stephen Curry could easily start a debate. It is worth mentioning that though both Steph and Chris now play for the Golden State Warriors, the two had a soft rivalry back in the 2010s era. Paul had an edge over Curry during the initial three common seasons they had (2009-2012). However, Curry eventually surpassed Paul as he kicked into full gear from his fourth NBA season.
Chris Paul vs Stephen Curry: A closer look
Whatever the circumstances may be now, Paul’s initial three seasons are better compared to Curry’s initial three seasons in the league. The 38-year-old averaged 18.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists in his first three seasons (2005-08). Meanwhile, Curry averaged 17.5 points 4.1 rebounds, and 5.8 assists during his initial three seasons (2009-12). He further closed the gap in the next season itself and eventually surpassed Paul in the consecutive season.
At present, a comparison in career stat-line favors Steph. He has averaged 24.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 6.4 assists per game throughout his career so far. Meanwhile, CP3 has so far averaged 17.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. Notably, he has a lead in assists at 9.4 assists per game.
In terms of awards and accolades as well, the Warriors’ starting five-point guard has an edge over his teammate. Curry is a 4x NBA champion, 2x season MVP, and one-time NBA finals MVP. Meanwhile, Chris Paul has not even opened his account in any of these categories.
Who do you think has been a better point guard during their respective peak time in career? Let us know your views in the comments.
Written by
Edited by
Jayant Chhabra