The Los Angeles Clippers have experienced a highly turbulent offseason. Following the conclusion of a year-long probe into salary cap violations concerning Kawhi Leonard, the NBA ultimately imposed a major penalty last week. The league penalized the organization with a $50 million fine, suspended both Lawrence Frank and Steve Ballmer, and, most crucially, took away five of their upcoming first-round draft picks.
Despite the apparent resolution of the situation involving Leonard, the Clippers have still not concluded their trade sending Leonard to the Raptors, which had been verbally agreed upon months ago. These overarching complications loom over the team as the start of training camp draws near, but a fresh controversy emerged on Thursday in Clipper-land when the franchise’s online shop started offering authentic Bradley Beal jerseys featuring the No. 3—a number that had not been assigned to any Clipper player other than Chris Paul since 2011.
Beal sported the No. 3 throughout his entire career with Washington and Phoenix before transitioning to No. 0 upon joining the Clippers last season, as Paul was already on the roster. However, following Paul’s highly unconventional and chaotic mid-season departure from the Clippers last year, which ultimately served as the final campaign of the future Hall of Famer’s career, Beal is switching back to the number he wore for years. Most people had assumed this number would remain unofficially out of service until the franchise eventually retired it in honor of Paul. Paul spent seven of his 21 NBA seasons playing for the Clippers (from 2011 to 2017, and again in 2026), and he remains the franchise’s all-time leader in assists.
Interestingly, the Clippers are the sole franchise in the NBA that does not have any retired jersey numbers in its history.
Predictably, Beal’s decision to wear the No. 3 has sparked backlash among portions of the Clipper fan base, leading Beal to address the negative feedback on social media.
Beal committed to a new two-year contract with the Clippers this summer worth upward of $13 million after opting out of the final year of the deal he signed last summer following his buyout by the Suns. Beal managed to appear in only six games for the Clippers during the 2025-26 campaign due to a persistent hip injury that disrupted his season.
Considering the awkward manner in which Paul’s final season concluded last year, this decision feels like another avoidable slight toward one of the team’s greatest icons with very little to gain. Strained relationships between star players and their former organizations are not uncommon, most famously illustrated by Kevin Garnett refusing to take part in his jersey retirement in Minnesota until Glen Taylor sold his stake in the franchise—Garnett is finally set to permit his No. 21 jersey to be raised to the rafters during the upcoming season. It makes one wonder if Paul and the Clippers are heading toward a similarly icy post-career dynamic after the events of the past year, with Beal taking over his jersey number potentially widening the divide between the team and its former superstar.
