Los Angeles Clippers stars Kawhi Leonard and James Harden claim they were shocked upon hearing that former teammate Chris Paul had been dismissed and sent home on Wednesday. Paul broke the news, posting to his Instagram story around 3 a.m. that he’d been sent home following a late-night conversation with Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank. Not long after Paul’s post, Frank sent a text statement to ESPN confirming that Paul would not be continuing with the team.
To say the basketball world was stunned by this news would be an understatement, and apparently, Leonard and Harden are in the same boat as everyone else.
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“It was shocking to me,” Leonard said. “I guess they had a conversation, and front office made a decision.”
Harden also voiced how he felt upon seeing the news come across his phone and used the word “confused” to describe the moment.
“I’m just as confused and shocked as you guys, the world,” Harden said Wednesday night following the Clippers’ 115-92 win over the Atlanta Hawks. “Definitely surprised me. But not just Chris, it’s a lot that we were dealing with. But that is out of my hands. I got to focus on what I got to focus on and what I can control. I guess the front office felt that was the best decision for the organization.”
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Another layer to this story came when ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Paul had not been on speaking terms with Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue for several weeks. Apparently, Paul’s leadership style clashed with the way Lue runs his ship, as CP3 had become quite vocal in holding everyone accountable, including players, coaches, and management, according to Charania.
“We are parting ways with Chris and he will no longer be with the team,” Frank said. “We will work with him on the next step of his career.
“Chris is a legendary Clipper who has had a historic career. I want to make one thing very clear. No one is blaming Chris for our underperformance. I accept responsibility for the record we have right now. There are a lot of reasons why we’ve struggled. We’re grateful for the impact Chris has made on the franchise.”
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In his 21st NBA season, Paul’s second stint with the Clippers is now over before it really got started. Paul’s reunion in L.A. marked his third team in as many years. He’s worn jerseys for seven different franchises in all and will likely be a no-brainer first-ballot Hall of Fame selection when the time comes. A 12-time All-Star selection, 11-time All-NBA selection, 9-time All-Defensive selection, 6-time steals leader, 5-time assists leader, and a member of the NBA 75th anniversary team, there aren’t many who can match Paul’s résumé.
The Clippers snapped a five-game losing streak by beating the Hawks on Wednesday night, and it was just the team’s sixth win of the season. Harden, Leonard, and the Clippers will look to keep that going on Friday when they travel to Memphis for a showdown with the Grizzlies.
