2 questions Chris Paul will have to answer immediately next season

There's a lot of excitement in San Antonio's fan base right now. If you have American pride, you're happy to see Team USA enter the gold round, but as a Spurs fan, everyone is thrilled that Victor Wembanyama and Team France made it. Unfortunately, there is only one more game to play to determine the winner of the Olympic competition.

Fans will once again be without basketball for a while until the new season rolls around. The jubilation over the new additions to the roster will have to hold you down until it's time for tip-off. However, one of those new pieces brings more than joy with his arrival. He brings concern. Chris Paul is expected to be the starting point guard at 39 years old, and that fact brings up a couple of questions that won't be answered until he steps on the floor.

Can CP3 still keep up with the offensive pace?

Last season, the Spurs were third in offensive pace. It makes sense, given the number of young players on their roster that they would try to get out in transition as quickly as possible. Their youth also meant that they weren't necessarily ready to run a half-court offense efficiently and with consistency against NBA defenses.

They may have brought in Paul and Harrison Barnes, but this is still a young roster. Getting out to run will still be an important part of their game, but they'll likely need to slow down more often than they did last year. The Point God is a half-court savant, and it would be basketball malpractice not to allow him to play his game. A perfect mix will be needed to make sure the team is maximizing everyone's strengths.

How well can Paul defend at this stage of his career?

CP3, no doubt, still possesses one of the most intelligent basketball minds in the game today. But, spoiler alert, he's older now. As athletes age, one of the biggest issues is their lateral quickness, which fades. You need some semblance of that trait to play defense at a high level. Offenses these days operate with a lot of space, making it more difficult to help when a player is on an island and the best ISO players in the league will, undoubtedly, test him.

Hopefully, the range of Wemby and the length of the players in the lineup can make up for some of what Paul may lack in quickness. When it comes down to it, there may be times when the defensive liability may outweigh the offensive contribution. But those situations can't happen often for a team that is trying to reclaim its defensive identity.

There's a ton to be excited about for the upcoming season, but there are several concerns as well. This team isn't expected to compete for a championship this year, so it's not earth-shattering, but it's something to keep an eye on when the games begin in October.