Rowan Kavner
DALLAS -Chris Paul needed five assists to become the fourth fastest player in NBA history with 7,000 for his career.
It only took one quarter Wednesday night in Dallas.
Paul assisted on three of the Clippers’ first four baskets of the night. The only one of those four baskets he didn’t assist on, he hit a 19-foot jumper.
Six minutes into the game, Paul already racked up four assists by sharing the wealth, finding Blake Griffin once for a jumper, DeAndre Jordan once for a dunk – complete with boos – and J.J. Redick twice, including one for a 3-pointer.
Next Game: 11/12
Then came career assist No. 7000, as Paul found Griffin inside for the layup and the foul. By the end of the first quarter, Paul already racked up eight assists and finished the night with 11.
“I had no clue,” Paul said when told he hit the mark.
When asked if he knew which three point guards were the only ones faster to the mark, he started with John Stockton.
That was correct.
His next two guesses were Tim Hardaway and Mark Jackson. Paul is 15th on the all-time assists list, and both of the players he named next are ahead of him, but those guesses were off the mark.
When told the other two were Magic Johnson and Oscar Robertson, it made sense to him. Johnson, Robertson and Stockton are the only three players to reach 7,000 assists faster than Paul’s 706 games.
Last year, Paul joined Robertson, Johnson and Isiah Thomas as the only players with at least 13,000 points and 6,500 assists in fewer than 700 games. Paul already passed Bob Cousy and sits in 15th place all-time on the assists list behind Tim Hardaway, who finished his career with 7,095. Paul is also third all-time in assists per game behind only Stockton and Johnson.
