Chris Paul is not only returning to the LA Clippers, but he will be back in his old familiar No. 3 jersey.
Lawrence Frank, president of basketball operations, said that the franchise’s former quarterback of the Lob City era will continue to wear the only jersey number he has ever worn in his 20 years. Bradley Beal, who also has only worn No. 3 in his NBA career with the Washington Wizards and Phoenix Suns, offered to give the number up to Paul and will decide on his jersey number later.
“He’s worn No. 3 his entire NBA career,” Frank said of Beal on Tuesday. “Three All-Star appearances. I think he scored over 17,000 points in jersey No. 3. But he also knows what that jersey means to Chris and there’s a reason why he’s ‘CP3.’ And just the significance of Chris coming back to the Clippers. Brad volunteered giving Chris his number.
“Once Brad heard that it was a possibility that Chris was coming, he said, ‘I want to give him my number.’ And I don’t even think Chris knows this yet. So it’s awesome that Brad made such a great gesture like that.”
Paul, 40, is returning to the franchise he spent six seasons with from 2011-’17. He remains the team’s leader in assists and steals per game. But his role will be different in his second stint with the Clippers.
After starting 1,314 of his 1,354 career games and starting all 82 games last season for the San Antonio Spurs, Paul’s primary role will be coming off the bench.
“There’ll be nights Chris plays a lot, there’ll be nights he does not,” Frank said. “Chris is excited to be here, to be part of the group, to help lead the group and to play when called on.
“… Chris started 82 games last year and was a very, very productive player. So we don’t take that lightly when you’re taking on a different role. And so there were a lot of conversations, you put everything on the table and get everyone comfortable with it. But the fact that Chris wanted to come back, wanted to be at home, wanted to be with the Clippers, we obviously know what his skillset is, but also wanted to make sure the role made perfect sense from both people’s perspective.”
Frank said the Clippers consulted with James Harden — who teamed up with Paul in Houston for two seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19 — and Kawhi Leonard on adding Paul.
The Paul signing completes an active offseason for the Clippers. L.A. worked out a new two-year deal with Harden. The Clippers signed Beal after the guard was bought out of his contract by the Suns. They added power forward John Collins in a trade that sent Norman Powell to Miami. And they added Brook Lopez in free agency.
“They did [talk],” Frank said of Harden and Paul discussing reuniting again. “And when talking to James, talking to Kawhi, both guys said CP would be the best guy for this role. And I think James is all about winning. And obviously Chris and him played together in Houston, got within a game of going to the NBA Finals.
“What James talked about with Chris was his ability to see the floor like few others, the leadership skills he brings, the competitiveness and his everyday work ethic and approach. He thought that Chris would be a great fit for the team.”