“More than anything, I am filled with joy and gratitude.”
Chris Paul‘s final year ended in an unexpected way. This season, at the age of 40, he will return to the Clippers, where he spent his heyday, for the first time in eight years. With a team full of experienced veterans such as Kawhi Leonard and James Harden, who can still play at the top level, he returned to his old team to aim for the NBA championship, the only thing missing in his career.
Immediately after the start of the season, he announced that he would be retiring from active play at the end of this season. At this point, the Clippers were suffering from a number of injuries, including Kawhi, and were lagging behind with 5 wins and 11 losses, but there was still hope that they could bounce back from this point and pursue the championship. However, two weeks later, he was ordered to stay home by the Clippers and never returned to the team. Ahead of this month’s trade deadline, Paul will be traded to the Raptors in a three-team trade between the Clippers and Nets. However, this was for the purpose of reducing his salary, and the Raptors immediately waived him.
When he was released by the Clippers, he said, “I’m looking forward to what happens next,” and expressed his desire to play his final season with another team. However, he no longer had any interest in building the foundation for a rebuilding team, and there were probably no offers from teams that could aim for a championship.
“That’s it. After over 21 years, I’m retiring from basketball. As I write this, I still don’t know what that means. Most people will be surprised, but I don’t know the answer (lol),” Chris Paul announced his retirement on social media.
“More than anything, I am filled with joy and gratitude. Although my chapter as an NBA player is over, basketball will forever be engraved in my life. I was able to play in the NBA for more than half of my life. Just talking about it makes me feel unbelievable. Being able to make a living through basketball has been an incredible blessing, and it has also come with a lot of responsibility. I have accepted it, both good and bad.”
“I’m excited to take all the great things that basketball has taught me to the next stage. I’ve learned this from the people I’ve met through basketball: my teammates, coaches, staff, management, and most importantly, my family. There are no words to express my gratitude, but the good news is that I now have plenty of time to express my gratitude.”
Chris Paul had a fighting spirit more than anyone else, and although he had many enemies, he also gained a lot of respect as a leader among all NBA players. Although he did not win the NBA championship, he led the Clippers, which had only appeared in the playoffs seven times in the 40 years since the team’s founding, to the playoffs in each of his six seasons, and laid the foundation for the powerhouse they would become.
With the Rockets, he cornered the “dynasty” Warriors to the brink, and created an opportunity for the Thunder to rise from a slump to their current strength. The Suns lead young players to the NBA Finals. Although he was a failure with the Warriors, he has also greatly contributed to building the foundation of the Spurs’ current strong team.
“Basketball has always given me a reason to fight. A true leader knows that facing the situation is half the battle,” he writes. Although he was unable to carve the accomplishment of winning an NBA championship into his career, there is no doubt that he is one of the greatest players in NBA history.
date: 2026-02-14 07:33:00
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