LeBron James is reacting this week to the news about his close friend Chris Paul.
The 12-time NBA All-Star guard Paul made the major announcement on Friday that he is retiring from basketball. Paul, after being traded by the LA Clippers and subsequently waived by the Toronto Raptors, has decided to hang up his sneakers after 21 total seasons in the league.
In response to the news, the Los Angeles Lakers star James issued a four-word reaction. “HELLUVA CAREER CHAMP!” James wrote in an Instagram comment. “CONGRATULATIONS.”
LeBron reacts to Chris Paul’s retirement pic.twitter.com/J74iX6bt9v
— Jason Squilliams (@JasonSquilliams) February 13, 2026
Paul, now 40 years old, notably never won a championship in the NBA. But he did win two Olympic gold medals as teammates with James on Team USA in 2008 and 2012.
Meanwhile, Paul and James are longtime pals. James once described Paul as one of his three “very good friends” in the NBA (along with Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony). The two stars were also famously seen together in the notorious “Banana Boat” picture back in 2015.
Paul retires as a 12-time All-Star, an 11-time All-NBA selection, a nine-time All-Defensive honoree, and a five-time NBA assists leader. With Paul now officially calling it a career, James becomes the only player left in the NBA to have debuted in 2005 or earlier.
