After 21 seasons in the NBA, Chris Paul has officially announced his retirement from professional basketball. Although his final chapter took an unexpected turn after being waived by the Toronto Raptors, the legendary point guard has decided to call time on his storied career.
After publicly declaring his desire to play the final stretch of his career in Los Angeles, Paul was granted that opportunity to play with the Clippers; however, the reunion did not go as planned. In just 16 games this season with the Clippers, prompediting 2.9 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 14.3 minutes per game, the franchise opted to move him to Toronto.
Reports indicated that the Raptors were not interested in retaining him, and he was officially waived by the franchise on Friday. Shortly after the move, Paul took to social media to announce his definitive retirement from the league.
Despite the unceremonious end, his legacy remains immense. A certain Hall of Famer, Paul will go down as one of the greatest floor generals in history, even without an NBA championship.
The former Spurs and Suns star finishes with 23,058 points and 6,006 rebounds, while ranking second all-time in both assists (12,552) and steals (2,728) across 1,370 career games.
Paulās farewell message
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In a heartfelt post, Paul expressed deep gratitude for his time in the league and the life basketball provided for him. However, the final words of his statement caught the attention of fans and analysts alike.
āThis is it! After over 21 years Iām stepping away from basketball. As I write this, itās hard to really know what to feel, but for once ā most people would be surprised ā I donāt have the answer lol! But, mostly Iām filled with so much joy and gratitude! While this chapter of being an āNBA playerā is done, the game of basketball will forever be engrained in the DNA of my life. Iāve been in the NBA for more than half of my life, spanning three decades. Itās crazy even saying that!! Playing basketball for a living has been an unbelievable blessing that also came with lots of responsibility. 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 wonāt. But the goal was always the goal, and my intentions were always sincere (Damn, I love competing!!).ā
Those last few words suggest that Paul may not have felt fully ready to step away, harboring a desire to continue competing at the highest level until his release by the Raptors and a lack of subsequent interest from other contenders effectively made the decision for him.
