When Chris Paul and James Harden played for the Houston Rockets together for two seasons, they were one of the most dominant duos in the NBA at the time. Paul was traded to the Rockets in the summer of 2017 to join forces with Harden to dethrone the Golden State Warriors as the kings of the NBA.
At one point, it looked like that goal was going to be achieved. The Rockets finished the 2017-18 regular season with a league-best record of 65-17. Houston had a 3-2 series lead and was on the cusp of advancing to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1995, but then Chris Paul's right hamstring strain happened.
The Warriors went on to win the next two games in the Western Conference Finals to crush the Rockets' championship hopes. The Rockets never recovered from the devastating Conference Finals series loss, as they were knocked off by the Warriors a round earlier the next season.
Paul and Harden posted the best winning percentage as an NBA duo at .786 with no NBA Championship to show for it. The duo's winning percentage. ranked better than the Kevin Durant-led Warriors and the 1990s Chicago Bulls dynasty that won six NBA Championships with Michael Jordan.
All-time win percentage:
— StatMuse (@statmuse) July 29, 2025
.786 — Chris Paul and James Harden as a duo
.740 — KD Warriors
.708 — 90s Bulls pic.twitter.com/FpYkLCWnTs
The Clippers will be getting something the Rockets didn't
Now, six years after they went their separate ways, the Los Angeles Clippers will be getting something out of the former Rockets duo that Houston never got: a healthy duo. Paul played in a total of 116 games in his two seasons with the Rockets. Harden played in 70-plus games in both seasons during the two-year span that Paul was in Houston.
It's unclear what role Paul will have in his reunion with the Clippers, with many expecting his play to be limited or for him to not even play at all. One thing is for certain, though both Paul is likely not to be rattled by injuries like he was the last time he was Harden's teammate.
It is unfortunate for the Clippers that the duo of Paul and Harden won't be as impactful as the one that the Rockets experienced. Harden, however, continues to play at a high level in the regular season; it's his playoff performances that have caused concern for the Clippers.
Harden averaged 22.8 points per game, 8.7 assists, and 5.8 rebounds in the regular season last year for the Clippers. The Clippers will once again be a contender in what will be a loaded Western Conference.