Chris Paul has broken the boundaries of NBA contract negotiations.
Somehow, at 36-years-old, the veteran star has agreed to terms on a 4-year deal worth roughly $120 million.
Amid all the noise in a wild opening day of free agency, Paul issued the following statement about his new (and possibly last) max-level NBA contract.
“One thing I’ll never do is take this game for granted,” Paul told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. “I love to play. It’s a real privilege. I’ve said this time and time again, I don’t care what type of business endeavors I’ll have set up when I’m done playing, it’s going to be so hard and tough whenever I finish playing. Because I love the game, I love the grind, I love the workouts, all of it. This game means a lot to me, and I’m so thankful to be in this position.
After this season in Phoenix and experiencing how amazing the fans were, my chemistry with my teammates, with [Devin Booker] Book, with Monty [Williams], I knew Phoenix was where I wanted to be. It’s time to get back to work.”
Paul is coming off a rather crushing defeat in the Finals, the point where his Suns and their Cinderalla run were put to bed by Milwaukee. After getting so close, it’s only natural that the franchise runs things back.
And while much uncertainty remained about Paul’s future in the league, the Suns have faith that he’ll be everything they need him to be.
If even one title gets achieved over these next four years, that contract will be worth every penny.
