SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul became the third player in NBA history to reach 12,000 career assists.

With his third assist just 3:34 into San Antonio’s 120-115 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Paul joined a list previously occupied only by John Stockton (15,806) and Jason Kidd (12,091).

“I remember the first time I played at Utah, and I looked up and saw that John Stockton was the all-time leader in assists and steals, and I thought, ‘I’m going to catch that,'” Paul said. “That was a lie. But to be second behind John Stockton is really cool.”

Paul dished out his first two assists within the first 2:14 of Friday’s game, and found Julian Champagne for a driving setup and Victor Wembanyama for a 29-footer from the wing as San Antonio built an 11-0 advantage.

Paul entered the NBA record books in emphatic fashion with 8:26 left in the opening quarter by lobbing a cutting Wembanyama for a two-handed alley-oop jam as the Spurs went up 13-4 in their NBA Cup opener.

Paul finished with 11 points, 11 assists and 2 steals, but San Antonio remained winless (0-5) since last season in the NBA Cup.

“Wow, that’s such a big number,” Wembanyama said of Paul’s 12,000 assist milestone. “It’s hard to imagine how much you need to average for how many years (to get there). Eventually, we want to see our names up there one day for every player. It’s just unbelievable.”

Spurs expected Paul to make an immediate impact on a young, inexperienced side after signing him in July to play alongside 20-year-old phenom Wembanyama. Paul hasn’t disappointed on that front, having tallied six 10-assist games this season.

“The first thing I say in any of these situations you get in, you’ve got to show guys you can jump,” Paul said of joining a young team. “I don’t go in there and try to be anybody’s coach. They want to see what you’re doing now, right? That’s why I’ve been training and working the way I’m working so you can tell them anything you want to tell them. But they want to see the.”

“I remember the first time I played in Utah, and I looked up and saw that John Stockton was the all-time leader in assists and steals, and I was like, ‘I’m going to catch that.'” That was a lie, but being second to John Stockton is really cool.

Chris Paul

Paul has also produced five double-doubles with 10 assists this season; he has 518 for his career, second in the league behind Stockton.

Although Paul’s arrival has slowed San Antonio’s pace, the Spurs have managed to maintain efficiency in assist percentage with the veteran point guard at the controls. San Antonio was ranked 22nd in pace heading into Friday after finishing last season No. 3 in the NBA. The Spurs ranked No. 2 in assist percentage (68.7%) on Friday.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock to end the first quarter, the Frost Bank Center scoreboard displayed a graphic of Paul standing with his arms crossed in celebration of his latest milestone.

“It’s a crazy performance,” the Spurs rookie guard Stephen Castle said. “I’m more than happy for CP and I’m really looking forward to him doing more this season.”