Chris Paul couldn’t wipe the grin off his face if he wanted.
He stood on Utah’s home floor, having silenced a crowd eager to have any excuse to go insane. But Chris Paul had a Chris Paul game — on his 33rd birthday, no less.
So as he looked out at the sea of gold streaming out of Vivint Smart Home Arena, he was asked on a live postgame TV interview about his Houston Rockets being up 3-1 in the series, heading back to Houston with a chance to put the Jazz to bed, Paul kept smiling.
Paul said he’s been up 3-1 before in the Western Conference semifinals only to see a massive lead evaporate. So forgive him if he’s not holding his arms high in the air in elation yet.
Drawing back on those memories, Paul said, “s--- went bad real quick.”
It doesn’t seem these top-seeded Rockets have it in them to fold like Paul’s teams of old.
“They know how to control a game,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said.
The Rockets leave Salt Lake City with two dominating wins in hand, led largely by their major offseason acquisition, the nine-time NBA All-Star. In Houston’s 100-87 Game 4 win, it was Paul who never allowed Utah to get a true sniff of a comeback. His mid-range game continued to punish the Jazz as Paul finished with a game-high 27 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. Earlier this week, Paul said mid-range jumpers, especially against Utah’s defense with Rudy Gobert underneath the basket, are like finishes at the rim for him.
“Chris shoots those shots like a layup,” Houston’s James Harden said. “He’s going to do it 20, 40 times, as many as he has to. He was extremely aggressive tonight, which we needed.”
The Western Conference finals are in sight at long last, for the first time in his future Hall-of-Fame career.
And his teammates wouldn’t let him escape the visiting locker room without a proper birthday celebration. Players pelted Paul and teammate Ryan Anderson, who turned 30 on Sunday, with birthday cake.
As he sat center stage at the podium, Paul said he will continue to embrace the sort of playoff intensity he’s so used to.
Houston, he said, is “going to keep it rolling.”
“He’s determined to win games like everybody,” said Houston coach Mike D’Antoni of his point guard, “determined to get to the next hurdle.”
