The Los Angeles Clippers’ season has gone off the rails at 5-16, and Chris Paul is the latest casualty. The 40-year-old veteran, signed to a one-year, $3.6 million deal for a farewell tour, has averaged just 2.9 points and 3.3 assists in 14.3 minutes across 16 appearances.
Sources confirm the team has informed Paul they are moving on from him; the only question now is how: a straight release, a modest buyout, or a trade once he becomes eligible on December 15.
Either way, Paul will hit the market soon. He’s no longer an every-night starter, but his basketball IQ, playmaking, and corner-three shooting remain valuable for any team looking for steady minutes off the bench. Here are the three most realistic landing spots for the future Hall of Famer to chase one final ring.
Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets are once again stuck in the exact same mud they’ve been trapped in for years. At 6-15 through the first 21 games of the 2025-26 season, they sit in 12th place in the Eastern Conference with zero signs of meaningful progress since the night they took LaMelo Ball third overall in 2020. The vibes are bleak, the defense is 24th, the offense is 18th, and the fanbase is exhausted.
LaMelo himself has been a massive disappointment so far this year. Playing in only 14 of 21 games because of recurring ankle and wrist issues, he’s averaging a career-low 18.9 points, 8.9 assists and 6.1 rebounds while shooting an ugly 37.5% from the floor and 28.3% from three. Multiple reports claim that Ball is open to a change of scenery and that Charlotte’s front office is quietly taking calls on their franchise cornerstone.
Yet there’s still talent here. Brandon Miller, limited to 25.0 minutes while coming off the bench early in the year from injury management, is still putting up 17.0 points and looks every bit like a future All-Star wing. Rookie sensation Kon Knueppel out of Duke, taken No. 4 overall, has been the lone bright spot, exploding for 18.3 points and a ridiculous 41.5% from three on high volume.
That youth is exactly why Chris Paul makes perfect sense. The Hornets have zero veteran leadership, zero reliable point-of-attack organizing off the bench, and zero contingency plan for the games LaMelo inevitably misses every year, or for the very real possibility that Ball gets moved before February. Collin Sexton is a microwave scorer off the pine, but he’s not a floor general.
CP3, a Winston-Salem native with deep North Carolina roots, knows this state, knows how to mentor flashy young guards (he literally turned Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Devin Booker into All-NBA players), and can step in as a stabilizer who runs pick-and-roll at an elite level while teaching Knueppel and Miller how to play winning basketball.
Charlotte could sign him on a veteran minimum or mid-level money, let him close games next to LaMelo (if Ball stays) or run the second unit (if Ball goes), and instantly have the most professional locker room voice they’ve had in years. For a franchise desperate for stability and identity, bringing the Point God home feels less like a nostalgia play and more like the smartest basketball move they could make right now.
New Orleans Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are a team in full crisis mode, sputtering to a dismal 3-19 record through the first 22 games of the 2025-26 season, the worst mark in the Western Conference and a stark reminder of how quickly fortunes can flip. What was supposed to be a bounce-back year after last season’s injury-riddled 21-61 collapse has instead devolved into a parade of setbacks, with the defense ranked 28th and the offense at 26th.
Home games at the Smoothie King Center? A brutal 2-9. On the road? Somehow worse at 1-9. Fans are tuning out, the front office is under fire, and whispers of a full-blown reset are growing louder by the day.
The injury bug has bitten hard again, turning a roster built for contention into a patchwork of youth and grit. Zion Williamson, the explosive franchise face, has suited up for just 10 games before his latest grade 2 right hip adductor strain sidelined him indefinitely, leaving him at 22.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.0 assists on 51.0% shooting in limited action. Dejounte Murray’s preseason Achilles tear won’t see him back until after New Year’s, while Jordan Poole’s quad strain and Trey Murphy III’s elbow issue have the backcourt in tatters.
Even Yves Missi is nursing foot and ankle soreness, forcing rookie Derik Queen into the starting lineup where he’s quietly thriving at 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4.9 assists over his 10 starts.
Enter Chris Paul, the original Point God who started it all in New Orleans back in 2005. Fresh off a shocking midseason parting with the Clippers, he is about to become a free agent on his self-proclaimed retirement tour, and the Pelicans feel like destiny. At 40, he’s still an elite pick-and-roll master who could unlock Fears’ raw speed and Murphy’s off-ball movement. New Orleans lacks that veteran floor general to bridge the Murray void, mentor the kids through 0-8 close-game collapses, and inject professionalism into a locker room that’s as young as it is turnover-prone.
Paul’s Louisiana ties run deep, as the team drafted him fourth overall in 2005, earning him Rookie of the Year, and fueling his six All-Star seasons there. Rumors have swirled since his November retirement announcement about a homecoming lap, especially now with the Clippers cutting ties.
The fit is poetic, if not perfect. Paul’s midrange mastery and IQ would steady crunch-time lineups without demanding the rock from Fears, while his history of elevating phenoms could fast-track the rookie’s growth. Cap-wise, his $3.6 million pact slides into the $8.2 million mid-level exception, no strings attached. Sure, his defensive quickness has waned, but in a season headed for the lottery anyway, why not lean on 21 years of poise?
For a franchise still chasing its first deep run since Paul’s era, bringing him back isn’t just nostalgia; it’s the steadying force that could salvage some pride before the inevitable rebuild. If the Pelicans want to honor their greatest player with one last meaningful chapter, this is the move.
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs have flipped the script on expectations this season, racing out to a 14-6 record through their first 20 games and sitting fourth in the Western Conference, a far cry from the rebuilding vibes that defined their last few years. Under new head coach Mitch Johnson, the team has blended youth with savvy moves, ranking 13th in defensive rating (113.8) after Victor Wembanyama was sidelined with a calf strain. As a result, the pace crashed down to 25th in the league with Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper injured.
Injuries have tested their depth early: a home-heavy schedule (9-2 at Frost Bank Center) masks road woes (5-4), and the guard rotation has been a revolving door amid setbacks. Fans are buzzing, but the front office knows sustainability hinges on health and experience, with a potential veteran Band-Aid.
Victor Wembanyama is the unquestioned centerpiece, evolving into an MVP dark horse with gaudy averages of 26.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.6 blocks on 50.2% shooting: numbers that have him leading the league in blocks and top-10 in scoring and rebounding. Even injured and expected back mid-December, his impact got him atop the MVP Ladder in the opening weeks.
Rookie Dylan Harper, the No. 2 pick out of Rutgers, flashed early promise with 12.3 points and 3.7 assists in his first 10 games before a left calf strain sidelined him for 3.5 weeks; he’s since returned, averaging 12.5 points in limited minutes over the last four outings.
The real crunch comes at point guard, where De’Aaron Fox has been a revelation when healthy, posting 24.5 points, 6.4 assists, and 1.5 steals on 48.8% shooting. But Fox’s offseason recovery from a hamstring strain delayed his integration, and now the depth is thin: Stephon Castle, the promising sophomore, has been out since mid-November with a left hip flexor strain, missing the last eight games with no firm return timeline beyond early December. That leaves Fox and Castle shouldering the load, but turnovers (14.6 per game, 11th league-wide) spike without a true organizer. San Antonio ranks 21st in assist rate, and close games (4-3 in clutch situations) expose the inexperience.
This is tailor-made for Chris Paul, who played last season for them and thrived immensely, making a San Antonio stint feel like a natural full-circle moment. At 40, CP3 isn’t the 30-minute starter anymore, but his 7.4 assists and 1.28 PPP in pick-and-roll from last season could stabilize the second unit, mentor Harper and Castle through their bumps, and unlock Wemby’s roll-man gravity in ways Fox’s speed sometimes overlooks.
It’s not about reinventing the wheel, as San Antonio’s record proves the core works, but insulating against injuries like Castle’s and Fox’s lingering tweaks. For a franchise that’s mentored legends, bringing in the Point God as a sage off the bench isn’t splashy; it’s smart, cautious basketball. If the Spurs want to sustain this hot start without flaming out, Paul’s the low-risk glue that could bond it all.
