CP3 joins Stockton, Kidd with 12,000 career assists

SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul became the third player in NBA history to reach 12,000 assists in his career.

With his third assist just 3:34 into San Antonio’s 120-115 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Paul joined a list previously occupied by only John Stockton (15,806) and Jason Kidd (12,091).

“I remember the first time I played in Utah, and I looked up and saw John Stockton was the all-time assists and steals leader, and I was like, ‘I’m gonna catch that,'” Paul said. “That was a lie. But to be second behind John Stockton is really cool.”

Paul dished his first two assists within the first 2:14 of Friday’s game, finding Julian Champagnie for a driving layup and Victor Wembanyama for a 29-footer from the wing as San Antonio built an 11-0 advantage.

Paul stepped into the NBA record book in emphatic fashion with 8:26 left in the opening quarter by tossing a lob to a cutting Wembanyama for a two-handed jam on an alley-oop, as the Spurs surged ahead 13-4 in their NBA Cup opener.

Paul finished with 11 points, 11 assists and 2 steals, but San Antonio remained winless (0-5) since last season in NBA Cup games.

“Wow, that’s such a big number,” Wembanyama said of Paul’s 12,000-assists milestone. “It’s hard to imagine how much you need to average for how many years [to get there]. Eventually, every player, we want to see our names up there one day. It’s just incredible.”

The Spurs expected Paul to have an immediate impact on a young, inexperienced after signing him in July to play alongside 20-year-old phenom Wembanyama. Paul hasn’t disappointed on that front, having pieced together six 10-assist games this season.

“The first thing I say in any of these situations you go into, you’ve got to show guys that you can hoop,” Paul said of joining a young team. “I don’t go in there trying to be anybody’s coach. They want to see what you do now, right? That’s why I’ve trained and worked the way I work because you can tell them all you want to tell them. But they want to see it.”

“I remember the first time I played in Utah, and I looked up and saw John Stockton was the all-time assists and steals leader, and I was like, ‘I’m gonna catch that.’ That was a lie. But to be second behind John Stockton is really cool.”

Chris Paul

Paul has also produced five 10-assist double-doubles this season; he has 518 for his career, second in league annals behind Stockton.

Although the arrival of Paul has slowed down San Antonio’s pace, the Spurs have managed to maintain effectiveness in assist percentage with the veteran point guard at the controls. San Antonio ranked 22nd in pace entering Friday after finishing last season No. 3 in the league. The Spurs ranked No. 2 in assist percentage (68.7%) going into Friday.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock to end the first quarter, the Frost Bank Center scoreboard displayed a graphic featuring Paul standing with his arms crossed in celebration of his latest milestone.

“That’s a crazy achievement,” Spurs rookie guard Stephon Castle said. “I’m more than happy for CP and I’m looking forward to him doing more this season for sure.”