Los Angeles Clippers fans have had the most brutal offseason imaginable.
Kawhi Leonard got traded (in principle) to the Toronto Raptors, ending his title-less seven-year run with the franchise on a ho-hum note. Then came the Leonard-Aspiration controversy
, resulting in the NBA stripping the Clippers of five first-round draft picks plus a $30 million fine for team owner Steve Ballmer, among other punishments.Now, a Clippers icon appears to be getting the shaft. Bradley Beal changed his jersey number from No. 0 to No. 3, the number Chris Paul wore during the memorable "Lob City" era. Paul is the greatest point guard in Clippers' history while Beal has played only six games for L.A., making the move a befuddling one.
It gets even worse if you consider
the Clippers inexplicably cut Paul during his final NBA season last December, apparently with a promise they didn't deliver.
Did the Clippers promise to retire Chris Paul's jersey number?
In an appearance on Carmelo Anthony's 7PM in Brooklyn podcast after L.A. cut him, Paul said Clippers president Lawrence Frank promised the team would put his No. 3 jersey in the rafters one day. Less than a year later, they gave his number away to a declining guard who hasn't been able to stay on the court.
Chris Paul details convos with Kawhi, Ty Lue and Lawrence Frank ahead of his abrupt exit from the Clippers 👀 pic.twitter.com/fG3ojh2YE4
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) February 17, 2026
What has Bradley Beal said about the Chris Paul controversy?
Beal paid respect to Paul on X after initially expressing apparent confusion over why the number change was such a big deal.
"He’s a legend!" Beal wrote. "The HISTORY and BRAND can’t be touched, nor erased!!!"
The Clippers can't seem to do anything right these days.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Bradley Beal breaks silence amid Chris Paul jersey number controversy
