Chris Paul Was Told That His Jersey Would Be Retired. Then, The Clippers Sent Him Home

When Chris Paul was unceremoniously sent home by the Los Angeles Clippers in December, the entire NBA community weighed in. Now, the Point God himself is speaking up.

During a live recording of “7PM in Brooklyn,” the recently retired Paul spoke with his good friend Carmelo Anthony about the situation that unfolded in Tinseltown. At one point, Melo expressed his confidence that CP3’s jersey deserves to be retired even after all the melodrama with Clippers executive Lawrence Frank.

Plot twist: The topic of jersey retirement did come up. “He [Frank] said that to me before he sent me home!” Paul revealed on the podcast. Laughing, Melo went into a Lawrence Frank impersonation: “CP, we are gonna retire your jersey but your service is no longer needed.”

Though Paul’s contributions to the Clippers franchise (particularly during his “Lob City” days in the 2010s) are beyond dispute, the image of him standing inside Intuit Dome as his jersey rises to the rafters is a pipe dream at this point. The 12-time All-Star sounded calm and composed as he conversed with Anthony, but the stories he shared on the podcast certainly don’t point to an amicable divorce.

For one, there’s the anecdote about a preseason chat he had with an unnamed Clippers teammate. “As soon as I went to the meal room, somebody came and said that they didn’t want me giving players advice,” Paul said. (The 21-year veteran went on to suggest that this person who admonished him was a former assistant coach of his, back when Paul was playing for another team. Who could it be?)

Paul also shared that, prior to the 2025-26 season, Frank had sent him an article that described his “leadership.” After years of thriving in the NBA as an observant, detail-oriented point guard, Paul expressed his skepticism towards Frank’s gesture. “An article I’ve never seen, he texted it to me,” Paul said with a sly grin on his face.

At this point, it’s abundantly clear that Paul has zero trust in the Clippers organization. Perhaps, when the emotional wounds have healed over time, the future Hall of Famer will agree to have his number 3 jersey enshrined in the Clippers’ home venue. There’s no telling, though, if or when that will ever transpire.