Chris Paul has finally said the words basketball fans have spent years avoiding, he’s retiring. After 21 seasons of running offenses with surgeon-level precision, the Point God is calling time on an extraordinary NBA career at the end of the 2025–26 season. And even if we all saw this moment coming, it still feels surreal.

Paul came into the NBA in 2005 already playing like a veteran. It didn’t matter whether he was in New Orleans, elevating the Hornets into relevance, or turning the Clippers into the most exciting show in basketball. Wherever CP3 went, winning followed. You didn’t just plug in Chris Paul, you built around him.

And that’s why his retirement hits because we’re not just talking about a good point guard. We’re talking about the point guard of his era. A 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, nine All-Defensive honors, Rookie of the Year, four assist titles, six steals titles, and sitting second all-time in both assists and steals. That’s not a résumé; that’s a masterclass in longevity and consistency.

Of course, the championship conversation will come up , it always does. For some people, no ring means no closure. But if there’s one player whose legacy was never defined by that final box, it’s Chris Paul. He influenced the game too deeply. He mentored too many young guards. He made the pick-and-roll feel so good. He owned the pace of games without ever rushing. You don’t earn the nickname “Point God” by accident.

What stands out now is how much the league is going to miss the things that never even show up in the box score. The way he could flip the rhythm of a fourth quarter with one sneaky steal. The way he talked teammates into confidence, or talked opponents into mistakes. The way every possession suddenly felt smarter because he was on the floor. Even in the late stages of his career, CP3 remained one of the sharpest minds in basketball.

And now we’re down to one final run. One more season to appreciate the footwork, the reads, the pick-and-roll timing, the mid-range jumper that still feels inevitable. One more season of watching a player who made basketball look intentional in every single detail.

When Chris Paul walks away at the end of 2026, he leaves behind a league full of players who grew up studying him, mimicking him, and trying to decode the magic behind his control. Nobody ever really cracked it. They never will. There’s only one Chris Paul.

So yes, the Point God is retiring. And even though the rings didn’t come, the respect did. The legacy did. The influence did. Basketball may move on, but it won’t forget this one.

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