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Chris Paul's Clippers Exit Makes Even Less Sense After His Latest Remarks

Chris Paul broke his silence after retirement announcement to address Clippers exit.
Cem Yolbulan|
Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Chris Paul's Clippers tenure and NBA career came to an abrupt end last week as the Point God announced his retirement following his trade to the Toronto Raptors at the deadline. Paul seemingly couldn't find a new team that checked all his boxes for the final few months of his career and called it quits.

What was more shocking than Paul's early retirement, however, was his Clippers exit in early December. Just weeks after revealing that it was going to be his last season in the NBA, CP3 was sent home by the Clippers. Since then, everyone outside of the organization has been trying to figure out what went down between Paul and the Clippers' top brass that led to his departure.

Paul addressed this in his appearance on Carmelo Anthony's show, 7PM in Brooklyn, earlier in the week. While he was honest and transparent about what transpired with the Clippers, his exit still makes little sense.

Clippers Asked Chris Paul Not to Give Younger Players Advice

Paul recounted a story about how he was asked not to give advice to younger players on the team during training camp. Paul said, "During training camp, I talked to one of my teammates for a while. As soon as I went into the meal room, somebody came and told me that they didn't want me giving players advice." Signing a 40-year-old point guard who is an all-time great competitor and asking him not to be a mentor is a baffling approach.

He then shared another instance in which Clippers GM Lawrence Frank texted him earlier in the season and told him how good a leader Paul has been.

Earlier in the season, Lawrence Frank sent me an article about how great my leadership was. An article I haven't seen. He texted it to me.
Chris Paul

It is unclear what the Clippers wanted out of Paul when they signed him as a free agent. Paul's vocal leadership style and competitiveness are well-established around the league, and if any organization should know this, it is the Clippers. Yet, they seemingly signed Paul ahead of his final season in the league and told him not to be himself.

It is understandable that Paul struggled in that role, and there was a clash with the coaching staff. What is not understandable is the fact that the Clippers expected Paul to be a quiet member of the locker room after the team got off to a horrendous start.

Even if there was a conflict between Paul and the organization, the way the Clippers handled it is unacceptable. Paul's latest remarks once again highlighted what we already knew: the Clippers threw him under the bus and told him to go home in the midst of his farewell tour, leading to his abrupt retirement. Especially considering that Paul is the greatest player in franchise history, this is something the Clippers will regret for a long time.

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Cem Yolbulan
CEM YOLBULAN

Cem has worked as an Associate Editor for FanSided's Regional Betting Network sites for two years and continues to be a contributor, producing NBA and NFL content. He has also previously written soccer content for Sports Illustrated. He has extensive prior experience covering the NBA for various Fansided sites. Cem has been living in the Washington, DC area for over 15 years since moving to the United States from Istanbul, Turkey. On any given day, he can be found watching soccer or basketball on his couch with his many cats and dogs.

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