Clippers release Chris Paul in the middle of his final season

With the Los Angeles Clippers struggling and veteran guard Chris Paul making little impact, the team released the 12-time All-Star on Wednesday, December 3.

The Clippers (5-16) informed Paul of his release in Atlanta, where the club will look to snap a five-game losing skid on Wednesday against the Hawks.

Paul, 40, announced prior to this season — his 21st in the NBA — that it would be his last.

“We are parting ways with Chris and he will no longer be with the team,” Clippers president Lawrence Frank said in a statement, via ESPN. “We will work with him on the next step of his career.”

“Chris is a legendary Clipper who had a historic career. I want to make one thing very clear. No one is blaming Chris for our underperformance. I accept responsibility for the record we have right now. There are a lot of reasons why we’ve struggled. We’re grateful for the impact Chris has made on the franchise.”

Paul confirmed the news himself on his Instagram account.

“Just found out I’m being sent home,” Paul wrote.

Signed to a one-year, $3.6 million contract last offseason, Paul rejoined a franchise with which he spent six seasons from 2011-17. This season, he averaged 2.9 points, 3.3 assists, and 1.8 rebounds in 16 games off the bench.

Paul ranks second in NBA history in assists with 12,552 and second in steals with 2,728, trailing only Basketball Hall of Famer John Stockton in both categories.

Paul, then with New Orleans, was named Rookie of the Year in 2006. He is a four-time All-NBA First Team selection, five-time NBA assists champion, and six-time steals champion.

A member of seven First Team All-Defensive Teams, he also was the MVP of the 2013 All-Star Game. Paul was named to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team in 2021 and won Olympic gold medals with the United States in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.

He played with New Orleans for six seasons, then was traded to the Clippers in 2011. He later played for the Houston Rockets (2017-19), Oklahoma City Thunder (2019-20), Phoenix Suns (2020-23), Golden State Warriors (2023-24), and San Antonio Spurs (2024-25).

Paul has career averages of 16.8 points, 9.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.0 steals in 1,370 (1,314 starts). He has not won an NBA title, getting to the NBA Finals only once, when his Suns lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021. – Rappler.com