After 21 seasons and 12 All-Star selections, Chris Paul called it a career on Friday. It didn’t take long for the well wishes to start flooding in.
Between his tenures with seven different teams, his leadership role with the NBPA and his famous Banana Boat friendships, few players in the history of the NBA have been connected across the league like Paul. Here’s a sample of the comments that came in on his Instagram post making the announcement:
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LeBron James: “HELLUVA CAREER CHAMP! CONGRATULATIONS 🙏🏾✊🏾”
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Dwyane Wade: “An honor to compete against you my brother. A Legendary Career”
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Klay Thompson: “Point god ! It was a pleasure being your teammate. Congrats on a legendary run my man !”
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Tyrese Maxey: “LOVE OG!! Respect”
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Trae Young: “Set the Blueprint 🫡 Legend !”
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Bradley Beal: “Happy for you and the fam! Congrats on a great career bro! LEGEND”
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Kyle Lowry: “Amazing career my brother!! Love brother!!”
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Naomi Osaka: “❤️❤️❤️”
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Donovan Mitchell: “Point God🤞🏾🫡”
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Matt Barnes: “One of the Greatest PG’s the games ever seen. Love you bro”
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Chiney Ogwumike: “LEGEND! ✊🏿✨”
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Al Horford: “Congrats CP!!!!! 👏👏👏👏👏”
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Muggsey Bogues: “One hell of a ride young fella- You did it your way🎩👊🏾”
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Trayce Jackson-Davis: “It was an honor cp! 🙏🏾”
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Mike Conley: “👏🏾👏🏾 Congrats!!”
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Richard Jefferson: “Point God🤞🏾The best is yet to come”
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Nina Westbrook (wife of Russell Westbrook): “👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 congratulations on an incredible career!”
Lindsey Vonn even got in there from her hospital bed, writing “❤️💪🏻 legend!!!” And, of course, State Farm chimed in with “From assists on the court to assists in life – you’ve always been a good neighbor. Respect the legacy, CP3 👏”
Stephen Curry, who has been both friend and for Paul in their careers, released a video message praising the future Hall of Famer:
One interesting note is that of Paul’s seven teams played for, six of them posted a farewell note on X: the New Orleans Pelicans, Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs.
Chris Paul’s NBA career is over. He made plenty of friends along the way. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
The one holdout was the Los Angeles Clippers, where Paul arguably enjoyed the best years of his career. There’s an obvious reason for that, as Paul reunited with the team for a farewell season only to be permanently sidelined in early December and eventually traded to the Toronto Raptors, who waived him Friday.
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It was an ugly divorce, as there were reports of Paul clashing with team leadership. The Clippers announced they were sending him home in the dead of night, and that wound up being the finale of his career.
Given that ending, it’s obvious any message from the Clippers toward Paul would have immediately been met with scorn on social media. It’s understandable why they didn’t go that route, especially when they’re currently busy hosting All-Star weekend. Still, it’s a reflection of how awkward things ended up with a player who matters quite a bit to the franchise’s history.