Chris Paul may no longer be the All-Star level player he was for well over a decade, but he’s still proven to be an impactful rotation piece. The 39-year-old showed as much for the Golden State Warriors last season, with his one-year tenure arguably going better than many expected from an individual standpoint.

As expected it wasn’t enough for the Warriors to guarantee his $30 million deal for next season, leaving Paul the opportunity to become a free agent for the first time where he promptly signed a one-year deal with the San Antonio Spurs.

Former Golden State Warriors guard Chris Paul has been labelled as one of the league’s most valuable free agent signings this offseason

While much has been made of Klay Thompson’s potential impact for the Dallas Mavericks next season, you can make the argument Paul will prove even more valuable to his new team in contrast to his now former teammate.

In answering questions relating to moves around the league this offseason, The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry views Paul as the most valuable signing of the entire free agency period to date.

Chris Paul to San Antonio on a one-year, $11 million is as good as it gets,” Mayberry wrote. “Paul isn’t the player he used to be, but the Spurs snagged a future Hall of Fame floor general to pair with their Hall of Fame coach and their young phenom, Victor Wembanyama.”

There was no surprise when the Spurs pounced on Paul in free agency, having desperately need a playmaking point guard last season. Perhaps it was slightly interesting that Paul turned down rival teams that could have given him greater opportunity of chasing an elusive championship, yet getting to play with a once in a generation type player like Wembanyama is also a strong motivating factor.

San Antonio had been floated as a potential destination for the 12x All-Star even as a trade candidate before February’s mid-season deadline, before being more strongly linked to Paul in the wake of Golden State’s season.

While the Warriors may not be overly impacted by Paul’s absence on a day-to-day basis, they could be impacted directly in matchups with the Spurs who are set to be far more competitive next season. His combination with Wembanyama could prove a nightmare for opponents at times, and that will only feel worse for Golden State if it happens to come against them.

Paul will be hoping to overturn a poor recent Spurs record against the Warriors, with the latter having won three of their four matchups last season and seven of the past eight overall.