Chris Paul accidentally explained why the Spurs' super team will work

Chris Paul sat down with retired NFL star Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson and dropped a few words of wisdom about why super teams have struggled to win lately.

"It's because role players are important, very important—people who know their role. Like when you watch OKC play right now. Guys got injured, but everybody [tries] to star in their role. They know Shai is the guy. Everybody knows that." - Chris Paul

CP3 is 100% right, and I'm not here to tell you otherwise. However, I'd like to explore a section of the conversation that was overlooked in this clip. How the team was built also matters. Plenty of owners have tried an equivalent of a get-rich-quick scheme in their efforts to win a championship.

That's the model that fails constantly these days. Fortunately for the Spurs, they're building the NBA's next super team in the one way that has consistently produced championships: from the ground up.

Chris Paul identified the biggest challenge super teams face

The problem is less about having multiple stars and more about getting everyone on the same page. There must be a hierarchy for success to follow. Everyone from the co-stars to the role players must be clear on their assignments and embrace them without question.

"Everybody tries to star in their role."

That doesn't mean a guy will just stand in the corner, shooting 3s and only 3s, but it can. Whether or not that's what you've been asked to do, you do it to the best of your ability from opening tip to the closing buzzer.

Play hard, make yourself available, work on that jump shot, and cut hard to the basket. Most stars will share the rock, knowing they need the support just as much as the supporters need the anchor.

Think about Ray Allen and Shane Battier on the old LeBron James/Dwyane Wade/Chris Bosh Miami teams or Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston on the Steph Curry/Klay Thompson/Kevin Durant squads. Champions have both stars and players who deliver on exactly what's asked of them in all phases.

The Spurs solved the problem before it could exist

We saw what happened when Brooklyn tried to throw KD, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden together. Bringing Harden in to link up with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George didn't work, either. Durant fell flat again when he joined forces with Bradley Beal and Devin Booker in Phoenix.

Building a super team is much better when it's done from the ground up. It may not be necessarily easier since it requires drafting or finding your cornerstone early and showing some patience as you develop everything around that player. However, when done right, it's still the most effective path.

It's how the Thunder approached their rebuild around Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and it's what the Spurs are doing with Victor Wembanyama. However, they ultimately possess something OKC doesn't have: multiple homegrown stars around the heart of their franchise.

Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper both project to be bona fide superstars in this league. Depending on how quickly that potential is realized, Fox could still be on the roster, giving them the deadliest super team since the aforementioned Curry/KD Warriors. He is an All-Star in his own right.

It's only possible because San Antonio was patient with their moves. They trusted their scouting and development teams, and the organization is already reaping the rewards of it. Like their three youngest stars, most of the supporting cast was also drafted and developed.

That makes assigning roles much easier because everyone has grown together. They like each other. They trust each other. Acceptance isn't something The Silver and Black have to teach once everyone reaches their prime since they've built it from day one.

So, CP3 is exactly right. Championship teams need players who star in their roles. The Spurs just happened to use the easiest way of creating that environment.

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