Chris Paul has been solid on the court and the veteran leader the San Antonio Spurs brought him in to be this season. He has played a role in the growth of Victor Wembanyama and Rookie of the Year frontrunner Stephon Castle.
He’s also averaging numbers — 8.8 points, 7.6 assists a game — well below his career averages. He turns 40 just after the season ends. Does he want to keep going? Marc Spears of ESPN’s Andscape brought up the dreaded retirement word to CP3, but it sounds like he will return.
“I’ll be 40 in May. So, yeah man, I’m going to keep playing, I think,” Paul told Andscape recently. “At the end of every season, I evaluate everything. Evaluate playing. Evaluate how my body feels. But the more years that go by, it’s more conversations with my family, with my kids. They have a lot of say so. They got a lot of input.
“Obviously, I got a lot of homies, friends that have retired or whatnot. And they are always like, ‘Man, play as long as you possibly can. Play as long as you possibly can.’ And I appreciate that. But I also, I just always want to talk to my kids about it because that’s the most important job that I have. I love to play. I definitely love my kids and my family more than I like to play. Anybody who’s in this knows the sacrifice could goes longer. I said this summer I will evaluate it and talk to my family about it.”
His choice may well come down to situation and money.
Paul is making $10.5 million this season on an expiring contract, can he find that kind of money again next season? It’s also unclear if he would return to San Antonio, the Spurs traded for De’Aaron Fox and want to give heavy minutes to him and Castle at the one, so there may not be a lot of minutes for CP3. Other teams would be interested, but Paul has prioritized trying to be close to his family in Southern California during the season. Paul also would prioritize playing for a team expected to make a deep playoff run. That’s a lot of things that have to come together.
There will be teams interested in Paul. If he wants it, he will be able to play a 21st season in the league. It’s just a matter of priorities for the future Hall of Famer.
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