The NBA has long been a theater of intense rivalries, not only between teams but also within them, From Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant’s clashes during their Lakers reign to Kevin Durant and Draymond Green’s fallout with the Golden State Warriors, internal disputes often shape a team’s narrative. Yet, amidst tales of locker-room turmoil, a surprising revelation about two former Los Angeles Clippers stars, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, has recently added an intriguing twist to their storied history.

During the recent episode of the ‘Podcast P with Paul George‘, one of the league’s most respected veterans, dropped an unexpected detail about the dynamic between Paul and Griffin. Despite the widely-discussed reports of their feud, Jamal Crawford revealed that he never once witnessed them in an outright fight.

“I was with them for five years, and I never once saw them two have a blowup. That’s what was weird about it; I had never once seen them just go at each other, not in a film session, not in the meeting, none of that. It was more so like we didn’t really talk about those things; if there was something,” said Crawford during the podcast.

The ‘Lob City’ era from 2011 to 2017 was helped along by Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan as the core of the Clippers’ renaissance. Paul was great with offense earning the nickname “Point God.” Then there was Griffin, who took everyone by surprise with jaw-dropping dunks.

As for the feud between CP3 and Griffin, it was a result of missed opportunities. From 2012 to 2017, LA made six straight postseason trips. However, they were unable to advance to the Western Conference Finals. During that time it had three first-round and three second-round exits. This in turn made the relationship between Paul and Griffin more bitter.

Statistically, Paul has averaged 18.8 points, 9.8 assists, and 4.2 rebounds in 409 games for the Clippers. On the other hand, Griffin averaged 21.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 504 games for the Clippers.

Crawford’s revelation challenges the long-standing narrative of animosity. For Paul and Griffin, their rocky past was ultimately one of competing egos striving for a common goal which was winning. Moreover, this wasn’t the only time Crawford had spoken about Paul.

When Crawford spoke highly of Chris Paul

Crawford, who entered the NBA in 2000, played alongside Chris Paul during their time with the Los Angeles Clippers from 2012 to 2017. This experience gave the legend a unique perspective on Paul’s game and so he made a unique comparison a few months back.

During his appearance on the Run Your Race podcast, Crawford praised CP3 for his skills and also mentioned Dallas Mavericks star, Luka Doncic in the comparison. “I speak of Luka like this, Chris is the same way… I’m thinking from the guards, those two jump out at me. I’m sure I’m missing some, but they can not only slow their game down, they can slow your game down when you’re in the game with them. So, they can slow the whole game down. They’re having so much fun in their head, it’s like, ‘I can do anything out here, you guys have no idea,’” said Crawford.

Crawford provided crucial scoring off the bench, averaging 15.3 points in 370 games alongside Paul during his time with the Clippers. Having witnessed Paul’s brilliance firsthand, Crawford’s comparison underscores how Dončić, despite being younger, has already embraced a similar role as a generational floor general.