Chris Paul's 'get-better mentality' paved the way for OKC's dominance

THE OPEN INVITATION quickly turned into an expectation during Chris Paul's only season on the Oklahoma City Thunder roster.

On off nights when the Thunder were home, the team's players were all welcome at Paul's place, where the future Hall of Famer lived alone while his family stayed in Los Angeles that 2019-20 season. His chef would prepare a healthy and hearty dinner -- vegan for Paul and other options for his guests -- and the players would eat and watch that night's NBA action.

Those nights became routine for a few of the Thunder's youngest players, including promising second-year guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and raw, undrafted rookie Luguentz Dort, the only two players remaining on Oklahoma City's roster from that season. They'd settle into the couches, viewing one game on the big screen and another on Paul's iPad, and soak up the wisdom of one of this generation's smartest basketball minds.

"We'd just be chilling," Gilgeous-Alexander told ESPN recently. "But how we used to watch the games, he was never, like, just watching them. He was always watching 'em to learn."

Paul also watched the games to teach. He would constantly engage his regular guests -- a group that also included then-rookie forward Darius Bazley -- in basketball banter. They'd talk about the tendencies of players they were watching. Paul would frequently focus on specific actions teams would run and discuss defensive tactics the Thunder might use against those schemes.

"It was nothing crazy, to tell you the truth," Paul told ESPN. "It was more so just camaraderie."

Paul's approach -- always teaching, always talking, always challenging his teammates -- hasn't always been well received during his 21-year NBA career. That's part of why his planned retirement tour has been put on indefinite hold, as the LA Clippers shockingly opted to send the future Hall of Famer home last week.

But it was embraced and appreciated in Oklahoma City, where Paul helped plant some seeds that are blossoming into a potential dynasty several years later.

Lessons learned from Paul have played small roles in Gilgeous-Alexander ascending into an MVP and Dort developing into one of the league's premier 3-and-D role players. Habits instilled by following Paul's lead became part of the franchise's fabric during the Thunder's journey from a rebuilding project to a champion.

"Chris really was the first person to show me what it meant to be a professional," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "He was always doing extra. It was more so off the court than on the court. It was the things you don't think about as a kid. As a kid, you're taught to just work super hard, but you're not really taught nutrition and taking care of your body, getting massages, getting treatment, those type of things he was always on top of.

"He just always had a get-better mentality in every way, in every way of life."

EVERY TIME DORT watches film, Paul pops into his mind. That's because Dort still uses the iPad that Paul bought for him during their season as teammates, when a purchase that expensive would have put a significant dent in the paycheck Dort received while on a two-way contract.

"What I saw in Lu really quick was that he had the work ethic," Paul said.

Paul wanted Dort to have the tools he needed to properly study the game, so he bought the iPad for him, as the 12-time All-Star has done for a lot of rookie teammates over the years. Paul made sure that Dort had access to Second Spectrum, a subscription service used by NBA teams, and tutored him on how to filter clips by using specific searches by play categories or statistics. And Paul often watched film with Dort, pointing out nuances he should notice and advising him on how to take notes.

"Being CP3's rook, honestly, it was amazing, especially in the position that I was in on a two-way," Dort told ESPN. "Obviously, Chris is Chris, and me coming out of college, I see Chris as a big superstar. So at first we didn't have that many conversations, but as I got more with the team, we got closer and I could see what type of guy Chris really was. And he was a great dude, honestly.

"He taught me a lot, a real leader, real vocal on the court. "

Paul's version of being a vocal leader occasionally isn't pleasant. He has never hesitated to yell at a teammate who he believed had erred, and Dort was no exception.

One of Paul's biggest pet peeves was when Dort would pass up open looks. Those were statistically sensible decisions -- Dort was a poor shooter at that point, making only 29.7% of his 3-point attempts that season. But Paul wanted to instill confidence in Dort, who eventually earned a standard contract with his relentless defense as a rookie.

"I used to be on Lu all the time," Paul said. "I used to say, 'Lu, you play defense so hard and you compete so hard that I don't care if you miss [shots] on offense. I just want you to shoot it and give yourself a chance.' When guys compete and play like that, then you live with the results."

Paul happily poured into Dort, who eventually progressed to shooting 41.2% from 3-point range last season, because he recognized the then-rookie's burning desire to get better. Paul saw the same characteristic in Gilgeous-Alexander, whom Paul calls a "basketball junkie," which is the ultimate compliment coming from him.

Gilgeous-Alexander distinctly remembers getting a phone call from Paul shortly after waking up on an off day during an early-season trip.

"Let's go lift," Paul said, more of a demand than a suggestion.

Gilgeous-Alexander expressed confusion in his reply, saying that he thought lifting weights was a summer activity to build strength. Paul gave an extensive explanation about the importance of in-season lifting to help stay healthy, detailing how working certain muscles served as preventative maintenance. Just like that, they became frequent lifting partners.

"Those are things that when you're teammates, that's just normal," Paul said. "If I got something going on and they can help me, they help me. If they got something going on, that's just a teammate, [sharing] the knowledge. With them being younger, I was just trying to show [them]. I think that's the importance of vets."

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What's next for Chris Paul, Clippers?

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PAUL RETURNED TO Oklahoma City with his career at a crossroads.

He had started his NBA career there during the 2005-06 season, when the Hornets temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. His electrifying play during a Rookie of the Year season was a huge factor in the city falling in love with the NBA.

He returned 14 years later after the Houston Rockets had fallen out of love with Paul. Paul came back to Bricktown because the Rockets decided to trade him, attaching a package of first-round picks and swap rights to trade him for Russell Westbrook, believing that Paul's decline was well underway at age 34.

That gave Paul plenty to prove. The expectation was that Paul wouldn't be on the Thunder for long, as the franchise seemed destined for a full rebuild after receiving massive hauls of draft capital in summer trades of All-Stars Paul George and Westbrook, but he was hellbent on being competitive during his brief tenure.

The Thunder exceeded expectations during that pandemic-interrupted season by finishing with a 44-28 record and pushing the heavily favored Rockets to seven games in a bubble playoff series. Paul earned a second-team All-NBA selection, averaging 17.6 points, 6.7 assists and 1.6 steals while setting a tenacious tone.

"The thing that I always think about is on the sleepy regular-season games in the middle of the season in a midweek road city that are like invisible games -- he's ready to play," said Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault, an assistant coach on that team. "Just the seriousness, the professionalism, and the level he gets himself to prepare to play an NBA game every single night is potent when you're around him. And I think it has an impact on the team."

When the Thunder left the bubble in September 2020, Paul knew he'd be playing elsewhere the next season, based on the honest conversations he'd had with Thunder general manager Sam Presti. Paul had more than held up his end of the bargain, restoring his trade value to the point that Oklahoma City received a first-round pick in the deal that sent Paul to his preferred destination of Phoenix, which he helped lead to the Finals the following season.

Paul had also left a lasting impression on the players and staff members who would remain in Oklahoma City long after his departure.

"Working with Chris was great because you got to see that mind working every day and his level of detail and preparation," Presti said during his preseason media availability in September. "I'm grateful because when we traded for him, it was a surprise to him, but he put two feet in here."

The one glaring omission from the 40-year-old Paul's résumé as an all-time great is a championship ring, and it appears almost certain that his career will wrap up without one. (No, a ring-chasing reunion with the Thunder isn't a realistic possibility; Oklahoma City has no open roster spot and several young guards who have earned playing time.)

But Paul did take a significant measure of pride in watching his former protégés win a championship last season.

"That right there -- nothing better, nothing better," said Paul, a courtside spectator when Gilgeous-Alexander received the MVP trophy during the conference finals and for a Finals game. "And they deserve it."