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LOS ANGELES – Staples Center is usually filled with the color purple in May, and yet Saturday afternoon a sea of red surrounded the court. After six long years, the Los Angeles Clippers had returned for the playoffs. There's an unfamiliar feeling of optimism and confidence that somehow, some way, the other NBA team in L.A. can win on any given night.

And it’s because of Chris Paul.

RiversideClips wrote:Didn't know why we gave up so much for Paul in December,now I'm thinking we ripped NOLA off!

mkwest wrote:It's easy to look at Paul and know that he's a very good player. I felt that he should have been the MVP in 2008 and the best all around pg in the league. Aside from all of that, his personality and character are what impress me the most.

Getting to watch him for 60+ games this season (so far ), you get to see just how great of a player that he is. You get see how he instills confidence in his teammates and coaches, controls the tempo, never gets flustered, doesn't panic, etc. He's never boastful. He'll always give credit to to his teammates, even when it may be more than they actually deserve at the time. Just as he gives the credit away, he'll take upon himself the blame even when we feel that there wasn't much more that he could have done. So many star athletes are the opposite. They want all the glory of a team's success, but will deflect the blame and criticisms everywhere else in a team's failures.

He's a little pitbull with an undying and unwavering tenacity to overcome any and every obstacle that is placed in front of him. Earlier in the season, Chris along with Chauncey, wanted to know every single bad record that the Clippers held, so that they could put it to rest. We ended a decade-long drought in San Antonio this season and scored our first win in Utah since 2003. His competitive nature is off the charts. The guy hates to lose, but he is also not afraid of a challenge. Most players would have thrown in the towel if they're down 24 headed into the 4th quarter. He tells Vinny to give the guys a chance, because he thought they could pull off the comeback. The bigger the mountain, the more eager he is to climb it.