Watch: Jose Alvarado Finally Uses His Patented Move On An Unsuspecting Chris Paul

The scrappy and tenacious playstyle of New Orleans guard Jose Alvarado has been on full display in the Pelicans postseason matchup against the Phoenix Suns thus far, and he has played a huge role in why his team is knotted up 2-2 with a heavily-favored Suns team.

The undrafted rookie is known to be a pesky defender. The type of player to get under his opponent's skin by getting in their face and never giving them time to breathe or relax, and it all starts with his "signature move" that he utilizes to apply pressure at full-court.

For anyone unfamiliar, throughout the season, Alvarado incorporated a strategy where he would sneakily camp out in his opponent's side of the court, and then patiently wait for the opposing ball handler to bring up the ball ahead of him.

And then, when the ball-handler least expects it, Alvarado would use his foot speed to trail the ball handler, coming from behind to steal the ball away, and give his team another possession in the process.

Think of Alvarado as a basketball-version of a ninja, emerging from the shadows to strike at his opponents when they are at their most vulnerable. Alvarado has frustrated many players this season with his patented move, and there's a reason that he has earned the nickname "Grand Theft Alvarado".

Well, coming into their first round matchup against the Pelicans, Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul must have studied the game tape on Alvarado extensively.

In Game 2, with the Pelicans up three early in the fourth quarter, Alvarado decides to try to catch Paul napping after Paul is given the ball off of a rebound. But, the veteran guard of 17 years lets Alvarado know right away that he won't be falling for any tricks.

Chris Paul not messing around with Jose Alvarado. 😂💀

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— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 20, 2022

The interaction was hilarious to see, almost like watching the wiser big brother waving off his annoying younger sibling.

And so, given how savvy of a player Chris Paul is, surely Alvarado wouldn't dare to waste his energy and try this move again in another game, right? Right?!

Jose Alvarado got Chris Paul last night. 😤

(🎥: @nbagleague)
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— theScore (@theScore) April 25, 2022

Alvarado certainly is persistent, isn't he? And in this case, it certainly paid off for him, as he was able to use his crafty defensive technique to successfully pick the pocket of Chris Paul.

In fact, this specific play is merely just one example of the many times Alvarado impacted Game 4 with his smothering defense. He was a menace in this game, and made Chris Paul visibly frustrated on multiple occasions, which was a major reason why the Pelicans were able to take Game 4 in decisive fashion.

If the Pelicans wish to advance past this 64-win Suns team, they are going to need Alvarado to continue being a defensive sparkplug off of the bench, especially if he can come up with more stealthy steals going forward.