Chris Paul arrives at the annual Fashion Los Angeles Awards on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
The Los Angeles Clippers’ season ended in a game they largely controlled and then let slip, a 126–121 play-in loss to the Golden State Warriors that turned in the final stretch and closed the door on their postseason hopes.
Not long after the result, Chris Paul, watching from retirement, chose his moment. He posted a single image on his Instagram story, a meme widely recognised online with the caption: “I stopped by one of my biggest haters funeral today just to make sure that … was dead.” There were no added words, but the timing, coming minutes after the Clippers’ elimination, left little ambiguity about who it was aimed at.
Why the reaction carries weight
Paul is not a distant former player taking a casual shot.
His history with the Clippers runs deeper than that.The Hall of Famer spent more than seven seasons with the franchise, becoming its all-time assists leader and shaping one of the most competitive periods in team history. Across 409 games, he averaged 18.8 points and 9.8 assists, running an offence that consistently kept the Clippers in contention, all of which made how things played out this season feel personal.
What went wrong in his final stint
Paul returned to the Clippers for what was expected to be the final season of his career, but the reunion did not hold. His presence in the locker room, particularly his vocal leadership, became a point of friction, and communication between Paul and the coaching staff, led by Ty Lue, broke down over time. By December 2025, the situation had reached a point where the team effectively cut ties, sending Paul home during a road trip before eventually trading him to the Toronto Raptors at the deadline.
Rather than continue elsewhere, he chose to retire in February, ending a 21-year career on terms that felt unresolved. The split was not quiet. In the weeks after retiring, Paul spoke openly about the situation, including on appearances such as Carmelo Anthony’s podcast, where he aired his frustration with how his final months with the team had been handled.
The game that prompted the response
Facing a Warriors team that had only recently welcomed back Stephen Curry from injury, the Clippers led for most of the night and at one stage held a double-digit advantage.
They had repeated chances to push the margin to a point where the game could be controlled, but each time the gap narrowed again. The fourth quarter turned decisively. Golden State closed on a 16–6 run, with Curry and a veteran-heavy lineup taking control late, while Kawhi Leonard was held scoreless for almost the entire quarter until the closing seconds. A game the Clippers had led for roughly 85 percent of the time ended with them chasing it. For a team already under pressure across a difficult season, the manner of the loss, at home and after leading for long stretches, made it sharper.
What comes next after the play-in result
The loss closes the Clippers’ season there, with no route back into the playoffs after the play-in defeat.For the Golden State Warriors, the win keeps their season alive. They move on to face the Phoenix Suns for a chance to secure the No. 8 seed, with that game set for Friday.
The winner advances into the playoffs to face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round beginning Sunday, while the loser’s season ends.The Clippers, meanwhile, are left with the way this one slipped. They led for most of the night, had multiple chances to stretch the margin into something more comfortable, and still found themselves on the wrong side of a late run that decided everything in a few minutes.
