We’re back with another episode of Tuesday Teasings, and today we’re analyzing NBA guard Chris Paul—namely his decision to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers for the upcoming 2025-2026 season. If you’re a regular here, you know we love CP3: he’s one of the best players in NBA history who has flown under the radar somehow while lesser players have garnered more undeserved adoration instead. Life is weird, no?

He has not been an All Star since 2022 when he was in his age-36 season, and Paul will be in his age-40 season with the Clippers. Yet he played in all 82 games last season with the San Antonio Spurs, something he had not achieved since he was in his age-29 season back in 2014-2015. But Paul is a transcendent talent, ranking seventh all time in NBA history for Win Shares per 48 Minutes Played, the most accurate valuation.

Where is Kobe Bryant, for example, on that list of the best ever? In 66th place, for the record, as Bryant was never the most sabermetrically valuable player on any of his NBA championship squads. That’s the one prize that continues to elude Paul’s grasp, sadly, although we all know the “ring culture” narrative is bunk. Yet it is still something we emotionally want for one of our favorites and one of the NBA’s all-time greats.

Do the Clippers have a chance to change that situation for CP3? You betcha. The key, of course, will be Kawhi Leonard, who needs to stay healthy and justify his $50M salary for once. Leonard himself is now in his age-34 season and has averaged just 60 games a year when he’s been healthy enough to be active most of the campaign. Last year, however, he hit the floor in just 37 games, so much depends on his health.

Like Paul, he is a transcendent talent, of sorts, ranked 14th all time for WS/48: a two-time NBA Finals MVP who is among the best of the best when mentally checked in and physically healthy. But who else is on the Clippers projected roster? Well, the team could go with an 11-deep rotation and mimic what Leonard’s Spurs did when they won their 2014 NBA title: keep the minutes in the regular season to a minimum for all.

In addition to Leonard and Paul, the roster includes (in no specific order) Bradley Beal, James Harden, Nicolas Batum, Brook Lopez, John Collins, Ivica Zubac, Kris Dunn, Derrick Jones Jr., and Bogdan Bogdanović. Of course, in his age-36 season, Harden also doesn’t have a ring despite being 16th on the WS/48 all-time list. So, that is three of the best 16 players ever in terms of sabermetric value here in L.A.

So, that’s our tease today: if the Clips can do what the 2023-2024 Golden State Warriors could not? Then they could be the next NBA champions. The oddsmakers disagree with us, of course, putting even the perennially overrated Los Angeles Lakers (6th most likely) ahead of the Clippers (9th). Yet the lesser-popular L.A. franchise has a lot going in its favor, and we’re going to break this all down really quickly.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are the defending champs, so they deserve to be top dogs until dethroned. But they’re not strong TV draws, and the NBA might be determined to fix this negative trend. Cleveland is second in the oddsmakers’ minds, but we covered this non-starter concept already. The New York Knicks are third, but we don’t think their roster is enough, despite the TV-market size advantage. Plus, they suck.

Denver is fourth, but the Nuggets just won a title in recent memory; the Houston Rockets are fifth, and that may be the toughest competition for the Clippers in the Western Conference, based on talent and TV market size. The Lakers are next, but the roster depth just is not there like it is for the Clippers. Next up are Orlando and Minnesota, two teams that we just don’t see making a serious run to the NBA Finals. So …

Place your bets, if that’s your thing, on the Clippers. If we were the betting type, we would take these odds.