Former Suns PG Chris Paul Thriving With Warriors

PHOENIX -- For the first time in years, Chris Paul isn't orchestrating a pick-and-roll for the Phoenix Suns at the beginning of a season.

Paul was packaged with Landry Shamet and draft picks to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Bradley Beal before eventually being moved to the Golden State Warriors.

A championship caliber team in Golden State surely would have benefited from the presence of a future Hall of Fame point guard, though his fit alongside names such as Klay Thompson and Steph Curry in an already crowded Warriors backcourt did draw questions in the offseason.

Paul and Golden State coach Steve Kerr danced around the possibility of Paul coming off the bench for the first time in his career. Now that we're a few games into the regular season, it's fair to say Paul has thrived in his new spot.

Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes highlighted how:

"The experiment has been a rousing success. Though Paul hasn't shot the ball well, he's grifting fouls, organizing the offense and injecting a sense of calm capability into a team plagued for years by turnovers," wrote Hughes.

"Most importantly, Paul has given Golden State something it's never really had: a way to not just survive the minutes when Stephen Curry rests, but to actually win them.

"With Paul on the floor and Curry off, the Warriors are outscoring opponents by 9.7 points per 100 possessions. When the two play together, that number spikes to plus-17.5.

"Apart or together, Curry and Paul are driving Golden State's strong start. Following a year in which the backups coughed up leads and the locker room tenor were testy, the Warriors are watching advantages balloon when Curry rests and haven't had the faintest whiff of drama off the floor.

"The Paul acquisition will ultimately be evaluated on a single criterion, whether or not the Warriors are the last team standing in June. But to this point, CP3's fit has been better than anyone could have imagined."

Currently the Warriors are the lone team with a winning record in the Pacific division as the Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Suns are all at .500 or below for various reasons.

Paul isn't exactly lighting up the scoreboard for Golden State, as only one game played thus far in November has seen him cross ten points. However, he's still averaging nearly seven assists per night and has registered multiple steals in Golden State's last three of five games.

It's still early in the season, but the immediate returns on Paul's presence in a Warriors jersey have yielded high results.