The business of the NBA can be brutal. We were reminded of that in the quiet hours of Wednesday morning.

Chris Paul, the Point God, was sent home by the Los Angeles Clippers. A player who many would argue helped put the Clippers on the map, because they had never tasted real success before he arrived in 2011, was brought back this season to the City of Angels. It was meant to be his farewell tour. He announced he would retire at the end of the season after 21 years in the league. At 40 years old, his athleticism has faded, even though his mind remains as sharp as ever.

The problem is that the season has not gone the way the Clippers expected.

They made moves over the summer that had plenty of people picking them as a top-four team in the Western Conference. They were loaded with talent and were supposed to contend for a title, giving Chris Paul the sendoff he earned.

If there is one thing we know in Phoenix, high-priced talent does not guarantee wins. The Clippers are this season’s version of last year’s Suns. Talent? Check. Payroll? Check. Cohesiveness, competitiveness, youth? None of that. Winning basketball games? None of that either. The Clippers are 5–16 and getting run off the court on a regular basis.

And Chris Paul is having the season a 40-year-old point guard tends to have. He is averaging 2.9 points and 3.3 assists in 14.3 minutes. There is not much space for him in the rotation anymore. So rather than send off their franchise point guard the right way, the Clippers are stumbling through it in a disastrous fashion. They have opted to send him home for the season.

He hasn’t been officially waived yet. “We are parting ways with Chris and he will no longer be with the team,” Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank informed ESPN. “We will work with him on the next step of his career.

What does this mean for Phoenix?

Well, you could talk yourself into a reunion. His deepest playoff run came here. He was the point guard who helped push the Suns into the 2021 NBA Finals, losing in six to the Milwaukee Bucks. For someone with a career full of accolades and All-Star nods, that Suns run was the furthest he had ever gone. So if you lean toward the retread reunion idea, and you know the Suns have an open roster spot, you can build a case for bringing Chris Paul back.

Would he move the needle on the court? No. Maybe he could offer guidance in the locker room to Collin Gillespie as he continues to grow. Maybe he could pass down some of the cerebral parts of the game to Jordan Goodwin. But he would not add much offensively or defensively.

Sentiment is powerful, and when you add an open roster spot and the Valley uniforms to the mix, the return can feel tempting. But the number 3 belongs to Dillon Brooks now, and that tells you how different this version of the Suns really is.

If the league wants to do right by Chris Paul, send him to the 21–1 Oklahoma City Thunder. Let him finish his career next to his protégé, Shai Gilgeous Alexander, the same player he mentored back in 2019. They do not need the help, but at least it puts the Point God in a position to chase a ring.

The NBA is a coldhearted business. Most businesses are. People get dropped in 90-second Zoom calls after years of service. We tell ourselves that is the way it works so we can stomach the cruelty. We wrap it in the idea of business, and suddenly it feels acceptable to act with no warmth at all.

So who knows what comes next for Chris Paul. Who knows where he ends up. I will always be a fan of what he brought to Phoenix. Not so much what came before or what came after. But I respect the hell out of him and hope he lands on his feet. Something tells me he will.

Coming back to Phoenix? That chapter has been written. The words have been read. The story is over.