This OKC Thunder franchise is spearheaded by arguably the best player in the NBA, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Since arriving in Oklahoma City back in the summer of 2019 the point guard has consistently shown the potential of superstardom and, now in year six with the club, he's undoubtedly achieved such a status.
From his three All-Star nods, two consecutive All-NBA selections, and averages of 31.2 points, 5.9 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and 1.0 blocks on 52.4 percent shooting from the floor and 35.2 percent from distance over the last three seasons there's a strong case to be made that the 26-year-old is the top two-way player the game currently has the offer.
Of course, getting to this level of play wasn't something that happened out of nowhere, nor did it result from his individual and internal efforts alone.
Throughout his tenure with the Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander has been quite vocal about the impact his coaching staff and teammates have had on his development as a player, though perhaps no one has received as much praise for their tutelage as Chris Paul.
Chris Paul's impact on Thunder star could now carry over to De'Aaron Fox
Though Gilgeous-Alexander and Paul were only teammates for the 2019-20 campaign, the bond they formulated has survived well beyond the veteran's departure.
Leading up to this season, the star guard publicly noted during Thunder Media Day that his relationship with Paul has been very "important" to his career trajectory, as he specifically noted how he "was the first player I was around that was very particular about the things outside of basketball" and that he showed him how to watch games "differently."
Now, five years later, it appears that this relationship between Shai and the 12-time All-Star may be starting anew with another young, promising guard as recently acquired Spurs stud De'Aaron Fox spoke glowingly about Paul earlier this week and touched on how he's already trying to take in all of the advice he has to offer.
"CP's a legend, man. He could have stopped playing a couple of years ago and still be a Hall of Famer so, for me, being able to soak up what he's telling me is great... Obviously he does talk a lot but he talks and there's substance to everything he's saying... I'm enjoying every moment of it and we're trying to build something," Fox said of his newly formed relationship with Paul.
Though Fox may be ahead of where Gilgeous-Alexander was when teamed up with Chris Paul in his first season with the Thunder, as he's already an established All-Star and All-NBA talent, the partnership seems to already be rubbing off in positive ways when it comes to some specific areas of his game.
Through four games played in San Antonio, the 27-year-old is posting averages of 21.3 points, 8.1 assists, and 2.3 steals.
Now, while it's far too early to tell if the 39-year-old will have as great of an effect on De'Aaron Fox as he did with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, after less than two weeks of being teammates it's evident that the new Spurs star has realized what the Thunder cornerstone did many years ago.
Said realization: Listen to and take note of what Chris Paul has to say.