Former Los Angeles Clippers star Chris Paul is officially hanging up his sneakers.
On Friday morning, CP3 announced he’s retiring from basketball in a lengthy statement on social media.
“This is it! After over 21 years, I’m stepping away from basketball. 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!” he wrote on Instagram. “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 ingrained in the DNA of my life. I’ve been in the NBA for more than half of my life, spanning three decades. It’s 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 won’t. But the goal was always the goal, and my intentions were always sincere (Damn, I love competing!!)”
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He continued saying that it “feels really good knowing that I played and treated this game with the utmost respect since the day my dad introduced me to it. It was the very first relationship I ever knew.”
The Point God said that the sport gave him a reason to “wake up at 5 a.m. and work out before school.” It gave him a reason to “find a way to get to the YMCA on snow days even when the roads were icy.”
Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul warms up before of an NBA basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets in Charlotte, N.C., Nov. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond)
“It gave me a reason to be the little brother always trying to beat his big brother. It gave me a reason to earn good grades so I could have a chance to play in college. It gave me a reason to score 61 points in a game even though my grandfather had just been killed. It gave me a reason to show up and rehab day after day after the meniscus tear, the Jones fracture, the separated shoulder and the 5 hand surgeries…” he explained.
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The 12-time All-Star credited the game for giving him a reason to just “show up,” as “showing up” is half the battle most of the time.
Now, the 40-year-old realizes it’s time to show up “for others and in other ways,” which is for his wife Jada and their two children, son Chris II, 16, and daughter Camryn, 12.
“I am so excited to take with me to the next chapter all the incredible things basketball has taught me. And more importantly, that the people I have been blessed to meet through basketball have taught me,” he said.
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He then thanked all his teammates, coaches, staff, executives and family.
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“I can’t begin to thank you enough…but the good news is I’ll now have much more time to start!
And the biggest thanks of all goes to the man upstairs…if you know this and are reading, feel free to finish…’ God is Good, All the Time and All the Time.’”
In 2005, Paul was selected fourth overall pick in the NBA draft by the New Orleans Hornets and went on to play for eight teams during his hall-of-fame caliber run. His longest tenure came with the Clippers from 2011 to 2017, helping usher in the team’s Lob City era. After stints with the Houston Rockets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix Suns, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs he returned to the Clippers in 2025 only to be released earlier this year.
Earlier this month, he was traded to the Toronto Raptors. He was waived by the team on Feb. 13, the day he announced his retirement.
Paul led the NBA in assists five times and topped the league in steals six times. In 2021, he was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
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