Did Chris Paul end up being too much of a leader for the Clippers?

Fifteen days have passed since then Chris Paul sent home to wait to see what happens next in his careerwhich therefore will not end in Los Angeles. The Clippers decided to part ways with the point guard, for reasons that are becoming increasingly clear. Our ESPN colleague, Ramona Shelburne, just said reasons for this failed marriage.

To know how to arrive at a decision in early December, we need to go back to signing players in the heart of the summer, in July. His role, for the Clippers, was to be a more important veteran in the locker room than on the floor. Because James Harden and Kawhi Leonard, as strong as they are, aren’t great talkers and the franchise needed a vocal leader. Chris Paul, with his strong character, had a profile.

The Clippers wanted a caring locker room leader…

Apart from the fact that the former Phoenix player is (very) boring in the dressing room, everyone has known that for twenty years, and the first mistake is in the expectations of the manager who undoubtedly hoped for a calmer player for his last season, more moderate, in a group of veterans who do not need to be managed last season like the young Spurs.

But even if, according to Ramona Shelburne, Lawrence Frank convinced certain players of the short playing time of “CP3”, the latter still hoped to have the opportunity to play for his last dance. This was confirmed during the preseason where he achieved good results, as well as during the training camp where Chris Paul and the substitutes often dominated the starters.

Clearly, coming in with a limited role, the former All-Star is finally showing good things on the floor, using the injured to get minutes and above all, starting to do, at the same time, what he does everywhere: speak his mind. Except that the player’s remarks are not appreciated and he is made to know that he must avoid speaking too much of his mind. Obviously, things are going badly for the player who opened two decades.

“If what they wanted was a cheerleader, why sign Chris Paul? He’s already played there, they know him.” summarizes the leader of the second team, quoted anonymously.

A not-so-vibrant group that was panned by critics

Things get worse when the regular season starts. Everything went wrong for the Clippers. From the first game, lost to the Jazz, Chris Paul wanted to talk to the locker room about this failure. A habit for him, rubbing shoulders with a Los Angeles group that isn’t particularly lively after dates.

After several games, especially after the one in Phoenix where he didn’t play the second half despite the absences of Kawhi Leonard and James Harden, “CP3” decided to talk to Lawrence Franco in the training room. He expressed his doubts to the president of the franchise about the culture of the team, this lack of discussions in the WhatsApp group or moments spent together outside the court.

The president responds that the point guard style of running is not useful in Los Angeles and is almost more like a ball and chain. The atmosphere…

On the same day, Nov. 7, Tyronn Lue and his player also talked about it on the phone for 40 minutes. This will be the last conversation between the two menrather a silence that is only interrupted here and there by text messages or quick words. Here, too, the player requests that meetings be organized between leaders, that training sessions be scheduled on rest days. His coach then thinks he is too critical…

A few days later, and while Chris Paul is no longer playing, there is a new meeting with Lawrence Franco. The latter still criticizes his behavior and his negative remarks and tells him that it is “the last warning”. On November 11, he apologized to his teammates. But it’s not over yet. The final nail in the coffin is his relationship with Jeff Van Gundy, the team’s quarterback, who is also strained.

No longer strong enough to be so painful to bear?

Everything crystallized during the match against the Mavericks on November 29. In this loss, after a close game, Jeff Van Gundy didn’t appreciate Chris Paul’s comments about choosing to put Kawhi Leonard on defense over Klay Thompson. The Clippers winger was coming back from injury, his playing time was limited and watching him struggle with Dallas’ shooters was a bad idea, according to the former Rockets. He then suggests that “Klau” change the players, while the assistant coach sees it as interfering with the tactical instructions.

There’s a debate on the plane to Miami about this episode and Chris Paul asks Kawhi Leonard and Chris Dunn if he “suggested” or “demanded” this defensive change. Two teammates assure that it was a simple suggestion on his part, not a ban. All this will then be told to the managers, who then decide that the adventure with the 40-year-old player is over.

So a chronicle of a predictable divorce? On paper, this reunion between the veteran and his former franchise was a great story. But his demanding behavior, combined with the status of a player at the end of his career, less dominant, were too much for the team, which also confirms with this separation, that she doesn’t want to be pushed aroundneither on the field nor in the dressing room.

In short, the Californians have been terribly lacking in character since the start of the season, but Chris Paul was still too invasive for them. Another opposing leader offers this conclusion: “He was already a pain when he was a great player. And now he is no longer a great player.”

How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.