Chris Paul no longer a Top 5 NBA point guard? HoopsHype ranks Phoenix Suns All-Star sixth

Chris Paul will always be considered one of the greatest points guards to ever play the game.

He's a 12-time All-Star and two-time Olympic champion who is third all-time in assists and fourth all-time in steals in the league.

Paul was named to the NBA's 75th-anniversary team, too, but he isn't in the top 5 on the HoopsHype list of top 25 NBA point guards going into the 2022-23 season.

HoopsHype ranked the Phoenix Suns' floor gen sixth on the list.

1. Luka Doncic (Mavericks).

2. Stephen Curry (Warriors).

3. Ja Morant (Grizzlies).

4. Trae Young (Hawks).

5. Damian Lillard (Blazers).

6. Chris Paul (Suns).

"Yet another disappointing playoff finish was in the cards for Chris Paul in 2021-22, a true shame considering last season legitimately looked like Paul’s best chance to win the first championship of his career," said HoopsHype about Paul, who earned All-NBA third-team honors for the 2021-22 season.

"The Phoenix Suns finished the campaign with a ridiculous 64-18 record and with the best net rating in the NBA at +7.5 with Paul pulling the strings for what appeared to be the league’s strongest contender. The future Hall-of-Famer led the NBA in nightly assists at 10.8 while contributing 14.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 steals and shooting 49.3 percent from the floor.

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"Alas, it was not to be for Paul and Co., as a humiliating Game 7 home defeat to a player coming up later on this list was the nail in the coffin for Phoenix’s title hopes in 2021-22.

"Nevertheless, despite Paul being 37 now, we still expect big things from him in the upcoming league year, as he proved without a doubt last season that he remains the Point God, one of the best floor generals in the league, a force from the midrange and out of the pick-and-roll, and a disruptive defender as there ever has been in the steals department.

"But Paul is running out of time if he’s ever going to capture that elusive first ring as something more than a role player coming off the bench, ala Gary Payton in 2005-06."

James Harden (76ers), Kyrie Irving (Nets), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder) and Jrue Holiday (Bucks) round out HoopsHype's top 10 point guards.

Read more: Are Phoenix Suns really out of Kevin Durant sweepstakes?

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns All-Star Chris Paul no longer a Top 5 NBA point guard?