Chris Paul Is Within Midrange of His First NBA Championship: Unchecked

Chris Paul is proving the midrange jumper is alive and well in chasing his first NBA championship.

Chris Paul didn’t just win his first NBA Finals game, he controlled it, because the Bucks gave up the shots defenses are comfortable surrendering but that might as well be layups for him...the still very much alive midrange jumper.

Suns run a double P&R for Chris Paul and Lopez ends up switching the re-screen. The problem for the Bucks with this switch is it's not really taking away Chris Paul getting to his midrange pull-up. Everyone else can stay at home but CP3 is just walking to his spot and rising. pic.twitter.com/BXr6fA2OOQ

— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) July 7, 2021

CP3 has been around long enough through 16 seasons to see the three-point revolution in real-time. However, that never made him shy away from shooting from 16 feet. And trust me when I say this: the analytics are fine with him pulling from the elbow given he shot 52% from midrange this year. 

Chris Paul shot 51.6% from midrange this season, tied for the third highest by any player over the past 25 seasons (minimum 350 FGA).

The only players better: Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant.

The Shots That Will Define The Finals: https://t.co/uvOX0FRTLG pic.twitter.com/jbes9ROcaB

— Kirk Goldsberry (@kirkgoldsberry) July 6, 2021

The numbers are all about measuring efficiency and CP3 is efficient from that spot of the floor, which is why he was never told to avoid those shots, even when playing for Daryl Morey and Mike D’Antoni in Houston. The midrange has also proven to be the ultimate weapon in the NBA Playoffs with the likes of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant and Dirk Nowitzki all winning titles at least in part due to their proficiency with that particular shot. 

Elite company 👀

Chris Paul is the first player with 30 points and 8 assists in an #NBAFinals debut since Michael Jordan in 1991. pic.twitter.com/6gNKVNQvcd

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 7, 2021

While Milwaukee has clearly struggled to defend players who will step into it this postseason. KD punished them all series that way and was within a few inches of sending them home even after his fellow midrange assassin Kyrie Irving went down.

Chris Paul midrange jumpers in the NBA Finals are the peak of basketball

— 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒆 🌩 (@Three_Cone) July 7, 2021

But now the Bucks are seeing a healthy Suns team where Paul is flanked by Devin Booker, yet another midrange master, and I’m not sure they have an answer given those are the looks they’ve been conditioned to concede. 

1 down. 3 to go @CP3

— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 7, 2021

Which is fine with Chris Paul, who despite his jersey number, has proven time and again he isn’t reliant on just the 3.