Chris Paul — a nine-time All-Star and Hall of Fame lock — is finally going to the Western Conference Finals.
Most Playoff Games Without Conf Finals App – NBA History
Chris Paul 85
Jamal Crawford 74
Kirk Hinrich 71
(via @EliasSports)— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 8, 2018
The 33-year-old point guard dropped 41 points, while dishing out 10 assists and having zero turnovers to lead the Houston Rockets to a series-clinching 112-102 Game 5 victory over the Utah Jazz.
What a game for CP3!
41 PTS. 10 AST. 7 REB. 8 triples, 0 TO.
The #Rockets are on to the Western Conference Finals! #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/9C9Tm8D8pm
— NBA (@NBA) May 9, 2018
Chris Paul is the 1st player to have 40 points, 10 assists, and 0 turnovers in an #NBAPlayoffs game since turnovers became an official stat in 1977-78.#Rockets pic.twitter.com/53GWoOZtQk
— NBA.com/Stats (@nbastats) May 9, 2018
RIP “Chris Paul has never made the conference finals” takes.
Welcome “Chris Paul has never made the Finals” takes.
Takes can never truly be killed. They only take on new forms.— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) May 9, 2018
Chris Paul and Alex Ovechkin make their first career Conference Final on successive nights. Cool. Sports is hard.
— BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) May 9, 2018
Deron Williams is somewhere in the underworld telling the other lost souls that he used to be as good as Chris Paul once
— Zito (@_Zeets) May 9, 2018
Assuming the Golden State Warriors take down the New Orleans Pelicans (Warriors lead the series 3-1; currently have the lead at halftime in Game 5), we’re going to get the highly anticipated Warriors-Rockets series, which in all likelihood essentially serves as The Finals. While the Warriors will be viewed as favorites, the Rockets present a very real threat with a star-loaded, high-scoring machine themselves.
As for the Jazz, this has been an incredible, unexpected season. It was viewed as a borderline rebuilding season for them after they lost Gordon Hayward to free agency, and instead they upset the Thunder in the first round and at least got one win vs the juggernaut Rockets. There’s nothing to be ashamed of after losing this series, and there’s definitely one of the top NBA teams on the rise, led by ridiculously talented rookie point guard Donovan Mitchell. Watch out for them next year.
