Prior to the start of the season, PG Chris Paul signing with the Los Angeles Clippers served as one of basketball’s true feel-good stories. Not only was he going home, but many believed he had a chance to cap off his illustrious NBA career the right way.
As is frequently the case, however, there’s no fairytale ending here. At the NBA trade deadline, Paul was shipped off to the Toronto Raptors. Now, he’ll go down having not logged a single minute for the franchise north of the border.
CP3 is calling it a career partway through his 21st season, leaving behind a heck of a legacy but also a void as Toronto makes a playoff push.
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Chris Paul Announces Retirement After Historic Career
On Friday morning, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the Raptors waived Paul. Just over a half-hour later, Paul took to Instagram to announce his retirement.
ESPN’s Marc J. Spears shared the opening portion of Paul’s release on X.
Near the end of his four-slide announcement, Paul expressed enthusiasm for his next steps.
“I am so excited to take with me to the next chapter all the incredible things basketball has taught me,” Paul wrote. “And more importantly that the people I have been blessed to meet through basketball have taught me.”
The No. 4 overall NBA Draft pick in 2005, Paul started his career with the New Orleans Hornets and made four All-Star teams. He then spent the next six campaigns with the Los Angeles Clippers, ushering in the “Lob City” era, joining five more All-Star teams and making an All-Defense team each season.
The remainder of CP3’s 30s was split between 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). He played in all 82 regular-season games last year with San Antonio at the age of 39.
In 16 games back as a Clipper this season, Paul averaged 2.9 points and 3.3 assists per game on 32.1% shooting from the field and 33.3% from deep. The six-time steals leader and five-time assists champ is undoubtedly an all-time great.
Updated Raptors Depth Chart Post-Paul Retirement
As of the All-Star break, the Raptors return a 1.08x payout to make the playoffs on PrizePicks Team Picks. They yield a 22.22x payout to win the Eastern Conference, as well as a 33.33x payout to be crowned NBA Finals champions.
Currently boasting a 32-23 record, head coach Darko Rajaković’s team is the No. 5 seed out East. Without Paul, their guard rotation primarily consists of PG Immanuel Quickley (17.0 PPG) leading the way. The trio of Jamal Shead (6.8 PPG), Gradey Dick (6.5 PPG), and Ja’Kobe Walter (6.2 PPG) falls in line thereafter.
On PrizePicks Team Picks, Quickley returns a 3.03x payout for a “Yes” outcome to take home the Eastern Conference Finals MVP award.
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Make NBA Picks on PrizePicks
With Chris Paul retiring, there’s one less household name in the basketball landscape. Despite that, there are still plenty of ways for hoops heads to follow the action and take their fandom to the next level.
You can make your NBA picks on PrizePicks, earning real-money rewards if you’re right. Just pick at least two players and predict More or Less on their projected stats. With PrizePicks Team Picks, make predictions on game winners, spreads, over/unders, and more — now available in 34 states!
Keep it locked in here with the Playbook for continued NBA news, picks, and analysis every day.
