VIDEO: Isaiah Thomas hunts down Chris Paul, blocks him from behind

In the first quarter Monday, with the ball in his hands and nobody in front of him, Chris Paul stole a quick glance over his shoulder, saw he had about five feet of separation on the 5-foot-9 Isaiah Thomas, and justifiably deduced that he had a free layup.

You can imagine Paul's surprise when he found Thomas had somehow closed the gap with about three strides, before taking flight to thwart his attempt at the rim.