Chris Paul officially ended his 21-season career as one of the NBA’s greatest point guards, announcing his retirement on Friday on Instagram.
“This is it! After 21 years I’m stepping away from basketball,” Paul wrote in the social-media post. “As I write this, it’s hard to really know what to feel, but for once — most people would be surprised — I don’t have the answer lol! But, mostly I’m filled with so much joy and gratitude!
“While this chapter of being an ‘NBA player’ is done, the game of basketball will forever be engrained in the DNA of my life.”
The fourth overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft out of Wake Forest, Paul ranks second on the NBA’s all-time assist list — his 12,552 assists trail only John Stockton’s 15,806. He is also second behind Stockton in steals. He leaves as a 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA point guard, five-time single-season assists leader, nine-time All-Defense selection and a member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team.
Advertisement
For his career, Paul averaged 16.8 points, 9.2 assists and 4.4 rebounds. He was also a two-time Olympic gold medalist with the U.S. men’s national team. His next stop will be the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
In a statement, NBA commissioner Adam Silver called Paul “one of the greatest point guards in NBA history and a true steward of our sport.” Silver also credited Paul for his role as president of the NBPA.
Paul and the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James are the only players with at least 20,000 points and 10,000 assists in their careers.
“Playing basketball for a living has been an unbelievable blessing that came with lots of responsibility,” Paul also said in his Instagram post. “I embraced it all. The good and the bad. As a lifelong learner, leadership is hard and is not for the weak. Some will like you and many people won’t. But the goal was always the goal, and my intentions were always sincere (Damn, I love competing!!)”
Paul had previously announced this would be his final season, a farewell tour of sorts, after he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers in the offseason. The Clippers struggled to a 5-16 start and then sent him home from a roadtrip on Dec. 3, saying they planned to part ways with him after he reportedly clashed Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank.
Advertisement
The Clippers kept Paul on the roster until trading him to the Toronto Raptors at the trade deadline earlier this month. There was never an expectation Paul would play for the Raptors, and the team waived him on Friday shortly before his retirement announcement.
The final game of Paul’s career was a 140-123 loss to the Miami Heat on Dec. 1 in which he had eight points and three assists in 14 minutes. He averaged a career-low 2.9 points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 16 games with the Clippers this season.
This was Paul’s second stint with the Clippers. He also played for the San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets after beginning his career with the New Orleans Hornets.
Last season with the Spurs, Paul was the oldest player in NBA history to start all 82 games. It was only the second time in his career Paul played all 82. He finished his career having played in 1,370 regular-season games and 149 playoff games.
Advertisement
Despite Paul’s success and longevity, he never won an NBA championship. Untimely injuries sometimes limited his advancement in the playoffs, including in 2018 when he missed the last two games of the Western Conference finals as the Warriors beat his Rockets. He reached the NBA Finals for the first time in 2021 with the Suns and took a 2-0 lead over the Milwaukee Bucks only to lose the next four games.