Curry talked about Paul after the playoff fiasco, hoping that the team would give up on Paul and let him go to another team

The 2023-24 NBA play-offs have begun, and the Golden State Warriors lost to the Sacramento Kings with a score of 94-118 on the road due to the poor performance of their core players, and finally remained in tenth place in the West and missed the playoffs in the 2023-24 season.

For the Golden State Warriors, the biggest loss is Chris Paul, as he hasn't missed the playoffs since 2010. As a result, after being traded to the Golden State Warriors in the 2023 offseason, the record of 13 consecutive seasons in the playoffs was ended.

Chris Paul also ended his career with the Golden State Warriors without serving as a team bench for many years. Playing as a core player off the bench for the first time in the regular season, the team missed the playoffs, which can be said to be painful. On top of that, there are still a lot of internal disputes in the team, which have not been able to be effectively resolved.

Chris Paul did not get much playing time and performance opportunities in this play-off game, and was also questioned about the possibility of leaving the Golden State Warriors next season. Because Chris Paul is 38 years old, one of the oldest players in the league. Moreover, he has one season left on his contract, with an annual salary of $30 million.

However, the final year is a team option and is not guaranteed. If the Golden State Warriors choose to give up Chris Paul before June 29, his $30 million will be in vain. After the game, Stephen Curry also talked about his relationship with Chris Paul and the future of Chris Paul.

"In our relationship, because I've been playing against him for so many years, there's been a lot of discussion about our relationship when I graduated from college, I studied with him in the summer, he passed on the experience to me, and then obviously there's the playoff experience that we played against together, you know him and his family, I know the way he handles things, but when you see him every day, and of course all season, you see his passion for the game of basketball, our conversations, how we push each other," Curry said. ”

Chris Paul was one of Stephen Curry's strongest competitors in the West when he played for the Los Angeles Clippers. Even if Chris Paul joins the Houston Rockets, Chris Paul's ability to lead the team has always been enviable.

For example, when he was traded to the Thunder by the Rockets, he led the Thunder to the playoffs with a top-6 record in the West. At that time, Thunder management wanted the team to swing and go into a rebuild. However, Chris Paul led the team to the playoffs. As a result, the Thunder negotiated with him and traded him to the Suns.

Stephen Curry continued: "I don't know how the playoffs are going to play out, but he's someone you love to play with because he's giving it his all every day. He's put everything into the game, and you can compete with him to see who puts in the most time, like he's always in the gym very early. ”

'Let's see what happens in the summer, but the team with him is better because of the way he treats everything. ”

Stephen Curry did not call on the team to keep Chris Paul, but in his postgame interview, he called on the team to keep Klay Thompson. Apparently, Stephen Curry hinted at the team, giving up on Chris Paul.

Indeed, Chris Paul would not have been a good fit for the Golden State Warriors. The Golden State Warriors have a ball-handler Draymond Green, and they need a player who can defend or attack, not a slow veteran.