The Los Angeles Clippers sent Chris Paul home less than a quarter of the way through the season, in what was supposed to be his farewell tour, and Paul’s friend and Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade believes he knows why.
Speaking on his podcast, The Timeout, Wade pulled back the curtains on his conversation with Paul, revealing how his breakup with his former (and now kind of current) Clippers team unfolded.
“Just even listening to the conversation last night, I don’t feel like there was clear communication about this whole entire CP coming back to the Clippers,” Wade said. “When I say communication, it has to be ownership, it has to be front office, it has to be coaches, star players.”
Though Paul returned to Los Angeles over the summer in what is expected to be his final season, the team sent him home after a recent road trip. Issues stemming from Paul’s clashes with head coach Tyronn Lue and the front office reportedly were a big factor in his dismissal, despite denials from both the coach and team president Lawrence Frank.
Dwyane Wade On Ugly CP3 and Clippers Breakup
Upon hearing the news, Paul posted on social media, writing, “Just found out I’m being sent home,” a signal that, like the rest of the NBA world, he was shocked that the Clippers were cutting ties with him in his 21st season.
In referencing his conversation with Paul, Wade reiterated that he believed a lack of communication played a major role in the ugly breakup between the two parties.
“We all communicate that this is a good idea. And we’re all on board for this. So I don’t feel like it was great communication,” Wade added, in reference to Paul originally signing with the Clippers over the summer, following a report stating James Harden didn’t think it was the right move. “I don’t feel like everyone was on board for this, or else it wouldn’t have cut the way it cut. Somebody didn’t want this [expletive] to happen anyway.”
Wade went on to say that he believes the internal structure of the Clippers organization played a part. While there have been no confirmations of who pulled the trigger to end Paul’s extremely brief tenure with the franchise, the three-time champion assumed someone had to be behind calling the shot.
“Somewhere, some line, somebody was like,‘ I don’t really, nope.‘ And they’ve got some power, and some say,” he added. “So when they went to the place of ‘I’m uncomfortable with how you’re trying to hold us accountable, I want you out of here.‘ Whoever that is.”
Since leaving the team, Paul has been working out at home, reportedly in hopes of finding himself on a new NBA roster.
Chris Paul’s Uncertain Future In The NBA
While multiple teams have been tied to Paul since his forced Clippers’ departure, a recent report from Ramona Shelbourne of ESPN detailed how the point guard actually made an effort to rejoin the team.
Per her reporting, after being ‘stunned‘ at the decision, Paul tried to use his relationship with fellow veteran Brook Lopez to get back into good graces with the Clippers.
“Paul was stunned, sources said, and tried to plead his case. At one point, he brought teammate Brook Lopez into the room as something of a character witness,” Shelbourne wrote. “Lopez and [Kawhi] Leonard were Paul’s most ardent supporters on the team.”
Paul was always supposed to have a minimal role with the Clippers, but there was an unspoken expectation that he would quietly end his career on the team he spent six seasons with, but that obviously did not come to fruition. While still on the official roster, Paul’s future and how his NBA career will end is still very uncertain.
“I don’t even like him that much,” a source told Shelbourne of the breakup. “But this isn’t a G League guy. This is Chris Paul. There’s ways to do it where he can save a little face.”
Though a few of the Clippers’ players and Paul himself seemed interested in mending the relationship, it was reportedly torn between the point guard and the coaching staff and front office.
While Paul has been linked to a few contending teams like the Timberwolves, Rockets, and Knicks, Shelbourne reported that he hopes to find a way to finally cut ties with the Clippers after this brutal saga.
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