Spurs media day took place on Monday and fans heard from the biggest signing of the summer, Chris Paul. The living legend answered questions about the city, Stephon Castle and many other topics, but also took the time to make it clear that he isn’t just in San Antonio to impart his wisdom from the bench or play a small role play.

When asked why he chose Spurs, Paul said he “didn’t just choose Spurs. “Spurs have obviously chosen him too,” before explaining what played into his thought process.

“I look at the team and also just the ability to play, throw and play again. I think that’s the motivation. It’s about competition. And if you look at the team they have here, obviously Pop, it looked like it could be a good fit. And I’m just looking forward to the new experience.”

Paul averaged several career lows last season at Golden State, including total games started, minutes per game, total minutes played, field goal attempts per game and usage. It’s clear he played a severely limited role compared to what he was used to on a team that had a starting point guard and had never played through a single primary ballplayer. After more than a decade as a superstar and the offensive engine of the lineups he played in, Paul doesn’t seem to have enjoyed the change. The Spurs were one of the few franchises that could offer him a starting spot, minutes and a meaningful role, so he said it was a good fit.

As if he hadn’t made himself clear enough, Paul went even deeper into his motivation when answering a second question on the same topic later in the press conference. Why he chose San Antonio:

“Play. I know this sounds really general, but I think that at this point, since this is my 20th season and I’m away from my family… Love Playing basketball and being away from my family, I wanted it to be a meaningful thing. I want to play, I want to compete, and this was the best opportunity to do that. And knowing this organization and knowing Pop and what resources they have, I felt like this would be the best fit.”

Paul is known for his competitiveness, so the quote makes sense, but it’s interesting to see that he has a different opinion on what makes sense compared to other veterans. Time and again, former stars decide to spend the last productive years of their careers hunting for rings. They need less money and smaller roles to have a chance at a championship, especially if they’ve never won one before. Paul had an amazing career but ultimate success eluded him as he only reached the final once but that doesn’t seem to bother him. He seems happy to play for a non-contender like Spurs as long as he can play a significant role and make a name for himself.

Whether his perspective is nobler than others’ is debatable, but it’s certainly refreshing to see such an accomplished star wanting to show at the end of his career that he can still play and make a difference in the league.