Chris Paul announced his retirement in an emotional letter after playing for 21 seasons and, for a long time, being the standard all point guards were measured against.
However, many feel Paul's farewell was as anticlimactic as it gets. The 12-time All-Star was waived by the Los Angeles Clippers in the middle of the night in December 2025. He was then traded to the Toronto Raptors , which pushed him to hang up his sneakers for good.
As unbefitting as the ending of his career was, some analysts, including Kendrick Perkins , plant their flag firmly on the Clippers' side. For him, doing what Paul did in his second tenure in Los Angeles is something no franchise wants to deal with.
There is no denying Paul's basketball legacy. That's why most people believed he deserved a much better ending to his NBA journey. Perkins felt the same way until he heard about Paul's conduct, which was unbecoming of a respected veteran.
"So, we're not gonna hold CP3 accountable for none of his actions?" Perkins rhetorically asked Brian Windhorst and Stephen A. Smith on ESPN's "First Take." "I'mma tell you something. When I heard the news of the Clippers sending CP3 home, I was pissed off. I reacted the way that you guys reacted until I actually heard the stories of what happened. And see, that's what nobody is bringing up."
"No one is bringing up how he went behind Ty Lue's back in talking to the young fellas and undermining the coaching staff and basically telling the young guys not to listen to the coaches," added the 2008 NBA champion.
For Perkins, Paul clearly went over the boundaries of his role as a veteran mentor. He was supposed to be the bridge between the players and the coaches, but the word was that he was saying one thing while Lue and the staff said another.
Moreover, the Clippers also showed signs of life after getting rid of Paul.
"That's not called veteran leadership. Then, all of a sudden, magically, when they do get rid of CP3, the Clippers go on a run? I think they went 17-5 in 22 games to get back in the thick of things," noted Perkins.
According to Smith, Paul denied going behind Lue's back, and no public evidence ever nailed him to the wall. On the other hand, Paul was never the silent passenger, either. He pushes buttons and questions authority, and his second Clippers stint was no different in that regard.
That said, the Clippers are not strangers to internal turbulence. This is a franchise that has dealt with a racist owner, salary cap circumventing issues, and everything in between. Therefore, acting as if this fallout happened in a vacuum feels too convenient.
Whatever the case, it's all water under the bridge now. Paul is a first-ballot Hall of Famer five years from now and will hopefully be one of the first jerseys hanging up in the rafters of the Intuit Dome. One thing is for sure: When that time comes, people will remember him as one of the greats rather than associate him with the awkward final goodbye.
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This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Feb 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
