MAN OF STEAL
December 2, 2008

One hundred games ago Chris Paul failed to secure a steal in a Hornets game. Let me restate that. The last time CP3 did not grab a steal in a regular season NBA game was April 10, 2007…TWO seasons ago! In fact, Paul’s quick hands, remarkable anticipation, and phenomenal consistency make him the NBA’s “Man of Steal”. The 23-year-old point guard has had a steal in 218 of his 237 regular season NBA games.

CAREER GMS	STEALS	CAREER STEALS PER GAME
237	552	2.32

Paul now has a steal in 99-straight games (heading into Wednesday’s game against the Phoenix Suns) and is on track to break the NBA record held by Alvin Robertson.

NAME	STREAK	START	END
ALVIN ROBERTSON	105	11-6-85	12-29-86
CHRIS PAUL	99	04-13-07	?
MICHAEL JORDAN	77	03-25-88	03-17-89

In breaking down CP3’s steals streak we find some amazing facts. For instance, only 15 franchises have held Paul without a steal in a regular season game since he entered the league in 2005. Only five Eastern Conference teams have done it. Remarkably, he has only gone two-consecutive games without a steal TWICE in his entire career…once in his rookie season and once in 2006-2007. He was a thief at least once in all 80 games last season.

TEAMS HOLDING CP3 WITHOUT A STEAL (15 TOTAL)
CLEVELAND DALLAS (2X) DETROIT GOLDEN STATE HOUSTON	INDIANA (2X) LA CLIPPERS LA LAKERS MEMPHIS MILWAUKEE	NEW YORK PORTLAND (2X) SACRAMENTO SEATTLE (2X) UTAH

Paul actually gave us a sneak peak at what was to come when he started his NBA career with 31-consecutive games with at least one steal during his rookie-of-the-year campaign (2005-2006). If he catches Robertson, Paul would have a chance to break the all-time NBA record on Wednesday, December 17th in New Orleans on NATIONAL TV (ESPN) against division rival San Antonio. At this point none of us should be surprised at anything Chris Paul accomplishes. After all, look at what he’s already accomplished at the age of 23:

Rookie-of-the-Year (2006)

Gold Medal (2008)

Assist title (2008)

Steals title (2008)

1st player in 17 seasons (John Stockton) to lead NBA in BOTH assists and steals

1st player in 15 seasons (Tim Hardaway) to average 20+ ppg and 10+ apg in a season

Broke Oscar Robertson’s NBA record for most consecutive 20/10 games to start season (7-straight)

12 games of 20 pts/10 ast/5 reb…most of any active player since 2005.

Runner-up NBA MVP (’08)

2nd team All-Defense (’08)

Western Conference Player-of-the-Month (November, ‘08)…third time last two seasons.

Various team records set including most assists in a game (21) and in a season (925), most steals in a games (9) and in a season (217).

At 6-0, 175 nobody will mistake Chris Paul for Superman…but watching his smooth game and reviewing his incredible feats makes it seem like this 23-year-old can leap tall centers in a single bound. And giving the four-year pro a superhero nickname is not overstating his ability…especially on defense. Let’s just hope 29 other teams can’t find the Kryptonite to turn him human anytime soon.