Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul is in his 15th NBA season, and he’s made an improvement that’s helped him have a resurgence from last season.
Paul is shooting a career-high 41.4% from the 3-point line, and he leads the Thunder in 3-point field goal percentage. He tied a season-high four 3-pointers during the Thunder’s win over the Golden State Warriors, scoring 20 points, grabbing seven rebounds and tallying five assists.
In recent seasons, Paul has shot a higher volume of 3-pointers, averaging at least five 3-pointers a game in the past three seasons.
But this season, Paul is shooting 4.4 3-pointers a game, his fewest since when he averaged the same amount during the 2015-16 season.
Paul’s shooting on lower volume has helped him have a better season compared to last. This season, he’s averaging 16.2 points on 44.9% from the field.
Those shooting and scoring numbers are up from last season. During the 2018-19 season Paul shot 35.8% from three on 6.1 attempts, his second-highest career number of 3-point attempts. Paul also shot a career-low 41.9% from the field and averaged a career-low 15.6 points a game.
What’s also important is that Paul has not missed any of the Thunder’s 16 games this season. Last season Paul played in 58 games, as he suffered a hamstring injury around Christmas.
If Paul can continue to stay healthy and maintain his good shooting, then he could boost his trade value.
The Thunder might not trade him at the deadline later this season, but with his veteran experience and higher numbers, Paul could be valuable for a playoff contender in the latter half of the season.
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