Time to end the “will-he-or-won’t-he” speculation regarding Chris Paul‘s status against the Houston Rockets. According to Arash Markazi, Paul has told his teammates he’s playing.
Matt Barnes said Chris Paul is playing tonight.
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) May 8, 2015
Matt Barnes on Chris Paul: "He said he's playing tonight. You just hope that he's ready."
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) May 8, 2015
Even though Paul was officially listed as questionable earlier in the day, this isn’t much of a surprise, both because he went through shootaround earlier today and because it’s hard to imagine him sitting out such a crucial game.
Paul missed the first two games of the series with the hamstring injury he sustained in Game 7 against the San Antonio Spurs. Because the Clippers stole Game 1 from the Rockets, they were able to rest Paul for an extra few days. Paul’s presence will alleviate some of the pressure from Blake Griffin, who has been carrying both the scoring and playmaking load in his absence. While Paul probably won’t be at full strength, even a 70 percent Chris Paul is miles better than a 100% Austin Rivers, who started the past two games for the Clippers.
