As the oldest healthy starting point guard in the NBA, an honorific of which Chris Paul is particularly proud, he had done everything he brought out for his home debut many times before. He also has long had sense of the occasion.
He also knew three minutes was entirely too long for the Rockets not to have scored.
As if the Rockets needed a jolt, Paul applied the defibrillator his way, with that sleight-of-hand, freeze-the-defense, between the legs dribble to a mid-range jumper. He added another, and just like that, the Rockets were rolling again.
Once the Rockets offense got in gear, it took them to a lead that reached a season high 47 points before the Rockets finished off a 125-95 cruise past the Denver Nuggets at Toyota Center on Wednesday.