In a three-team trade involving the Los Angeles Clippers, Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets, 12-time All-Star Chris Paul is heading from Los Angeles to Toronto, while Brooklyn will receive Ochai Agbaji, a 2032 Raptors second-round draft pick and cash, multiple media outlets reported Wednesday.
Per the reports, Paul — who plans to retire at season’s end — will not be required to report to the Raptors and may be dealt or waived before Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
Each team involved benefited financially from the trade. Toronto moved out of the luxury tax, the Clippers saved $7 million in tax money and cleared a roster spot and Brooklyn acquired an asset and cash while covering Agbaji’s salary.
Per NBA insider Jake Fischer, the rights to the Nets’ Vanja Marinkovic will be sent to the Clippers to finalize the deal. The Clippers will send $3.5 million to the Nets, NBA insider Chris Haynes reported.
Paul, 40, and the Clippers agreed to part ways in early December. Per ESPN, Paul and Clippers coach Ty Lue were not speaking to each other for a number of weeks leading up to the separation. Paul later told People.com that he was “at peace” with the move and ready for his next destination.
Signed to a one-year, $3.6 million contract last offseason, Paul rejoined a Clippers franchise with which he spent six seasons from 2011-17. This season, he averaged 2.9 points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 16 games off the bench.
Paul ranks second in NBA history in assists with 12,552 and second in steals with 2,728, trailing only Basketball Hall of Famer John Stockton in both categories.
Paul, then with New Orleans, was named Rookie of the Year in 2006. He is a four-time All-NBA first-team selection, five-time NBA assists champion and six-time steals champion. A member of seven first-team All-Defensive teams, he also was the MVP of the 2013 All-Star Game.
Paul won Olympic gold medals with the United States in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012 and was named to the NBA’s 75th anniversary team in 2021.
He played with New Orleans for six seasons, then was traded to the Clippers in 2011. He later played for the Houston Rockets (2017-19), Oklahoma City Thunder (2019-20), Phoenix Suns (2020-23), Golden State Warriors (2023-24) and San Antonio Spurs (2024-25).
Paul has career averages of 16.8 points, 9.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals in 1,370 games (1,314 starts). He has not won an NBA title, getting to the Finals only once when his Suns lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021.
–Field Level Media
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