The Hammy Heard Round The World: Why The Clippers Should Sit Chris Paul.

Chris Paul’s hamstring tightening up dampened the Clippers somewhat-of-a-statement victory over the we-share-a-building rival Lakers. 

Chris Paul grabs his troubled hammy.

Before CP3 came to Tinseltown, to say that was a rivalry was an insult to the phrase rivalry.

In fact, before CP3 and Blake Griffin united to form what is now known as Lob City, the Clippers were an afterthought to many Angelinos who would get tickets in order to see visiting teams.

But Paul’s arrival changed everything. That’s why Paul’s potentially balky hamstrings could be a serious problem for the Clips.

By making the bold move for the point guard without the guarantee that he’d resign when he has the ability to leave town in 18 months is daunting, especially in light of the price they paid to New Orleans to acquire his rights.

What makes this injury nerve-wracking is that hamstring injuries take forever to completely heal. You can get to 80 percent in a couple of weeks, but unless you take sit on the sidelines for a significant amount of time, the injury will not completely heal.

Now I’m no doctor, but having seen athletes tweak their hamstrings more times than not, there’s a better percentage than not aggravating the injury will likely occur.

Therefore, the positive vibes that have been emitting from L.A.’s other team will quickly evaporate if Paul’s hammy doesn’t completely heal. Even at 80 percent, Paul is the best point guard in the league.

However, if he reinjures that hammy, Lob City could very easily become Blob City. Without Paul’s incredible talents, the clock could strike midnight on what may become a fairy tale season for the Clippers.

For the first time in years, the Clippers are the most talked about in their city. That’s why they need to play it safe with their shiny new toy.

Since Paul hasn’t committed to the organization, he is the one with all the power. The team’s nucleus is young, hungry and athletic and most importantly, team controlled for the next few years.

Resigning DeAndre Jordan helped, but if they cannot resign Paul, subsequently see Griffin walk, then the team possibly made the costliest deal in the beleaguered franchise history, and that’s saying something.

My advice: rest Paul as long as possible, so that when the playoffs begin, the team can make more noise than those other guys down the hall.

-Daniel Kohn