Chris Paul didn’t hesitate when asked to choose between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luka Dončić. On Carmelo Anthony’s “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast, Paul went straight to his answer; Shai, and then explained that the separating factor, in his eyes, isn’t just skill or shot-making, but the message a star sends to his locker room every possession.
Paul pointed back to the season he spent with Gilgeous-Alexander in Oklahoma City, saying Shai’s approach and habits stood out, including the way he worked and took care of his body. But the part that made the quote stick was Paul’s broader point about accountability: teams don’t need their best players to be “lockdown” defenders, he said, but they do need visible effort.
“Your teammates just want to see that the stars actually try. Actually try on defense,” Paul said.
From there, Paul widened the frame beyond just a Shai-versus-Luka debate. He said he respects stars who at least compete on that end, name-checking Stephen Curry alongside Gilgeous-Alexander as examples of elite offensive players who don’t treat defense like optional labor. In Paul’s telling, that effort matters because it sets the temperature of the group, especially when roles get uncomfortable and the margins tighten.
“Luka Doncic vs. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander?”
Chris Paul: “Shai.”
CP3: “I think that year that we played together, he also started to see that defense matters… Your teammates just want to see that the stars actually try on defense… I got a lot of respect for Steph, Shai, and all… pic.twitter.com/aKzZxmmY39
— Cooper Jones (@CooperJNBA) February 23, 2026
